Morocco
Moroccan tourist centre gets stable drinking water

afrol News, 13 April - The southern Moroccan city of Agadir, the country's main seaside tourist resort, has gotten its water infrastructure secured after the opening of a new dam, to supply it with about 27.5 million m3 of water a year. The inauguration ceremony on Friday was led by King Mohammed VI himself.

King Mohammed VI, holding a short speech at the ceremony, dedicated the facility after his late uncle, Prince Moulay Abdallah, the Moroccan news agency MAP reports. The dam is located in the commune of Tamri outside Agadir and is regulating the water of Wadi Awkar, a tributary of the river Wadi Tamri.

The project had cost US$ 56.03-million, and was financed by the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development (AFESD) and the Islamic Development Bank. According to the AFESD, the concrete arch dam is 60 m high, 65 m above its foundations. 

The Prince Moulay Abdallah Dam is supposed to meet the municipal and industrial demand of greater Agadir city until 2020, according to the project analysis. Agadir, lying in an arid part of Morocco, has a relatively high consumption of water, not the least because of its large tourism industry. Agadir now has over 20,000 hotel beds, i.e. a quarter of the total Moroccan hotel capacity. 

The industry demands stable water supply for luxury and ordinary hotel showers, toilets, kitchens and gardens. Most arrivals to Agadir are European charter tourists, meaning that standards are expected to meet those at home if the foreign exchange earner is to secure its future. Other water-consuming industries are also located in Agadir, which is the principal fishing port in Morocco.

Sources: Based on MAP, AFESD and afrol archives

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