15th September 2021

Submitted by Morrocco Students from Media and Journalistic Club of Hamma Al Fatwaki High School.

YRE Competition 2021: Articles, 19-21 Years

13 kilometers from “Awalad Stoute” commune in Nador Province in Eastern Morocco, one can see groups of families and tourists gathering around natural water sources, taking a bath, or seeking its therapeutic benefits. They are seven adjacent springs, whose waters have flowed for decades in the direction of the Malouiyya River, the largest river in eastern Morocco. These sources are called “Moulay Ali Bathes” named after one of the saints of the region. throughout the year, they attract dozens of residents as well as the Moroccan diaspora.

Water is still flowing abundantly, but in the current situation, there is no development vision, which makes it compulsory to value it by providing the necessary equipment and infrastructures, a way to protect the environment and enhance touristic activities in the region. So, what are the obstacles preventing the development of these natural resources in a region characterized by water source scarcity and drought most of the time?

At about 9 am on Wednesday, March 10, 2021, our team that belongs to the Media and Journalism Club of the Hamman Al Fatwaki High School headed towards Moulay Ali Bathes to explore, and find answers as to the reasons why these environmental and economic resources are not exploited rationally. Upon arrival to Awlad Stout commune via national road #2, the young reporter's team took a road of 11-kilometers leading to these baths. On its outskirts, there are dozens of orange, olive, and various vegetable fields, linking Sabra agricultural valley and Melouiyya river.

When we arrived at Bathes Moulay Ali, we were first attracted by the calm and green space, with the sound of flowing water and of local and migrant birds. These birds, coming from various African countries, make of the Malouiyya River, with its springs and environment, an essential step in their journey to the northern European countries. This river, with its ecosystem, is one of the most important humid regions of the world according to the Ramsar Convention. This international convention aims at the sustainable use of wetlands to improve their main ecological, economic, cultural, and scientific roles as well as their recreational activities. Hence the crucial economic and environmental importance of Moulay Ali Ham Bathes. So, what about all these assets nowadays?

Overlapping problems

Once there, we noticed that, except for the paved road leading to the Bathes, there are no infrastructures that contribute to value this resource. More than that, waters are badly exploited by small farmers. How? By digging unlicensed wells, overexploiting water by using polluting motors, and by using fertilizers that cause pollution of the Bathe’s springs and the river. In addition to this, the farmers build random houses with cement next to the baths and river’s course, which spoils the landscape’s beauty.

Hajj Gaddor, one of the farmers who benefit from the Bathes and river’s water to wash his tomatoes and watermelon crops, explains that “This water is the only resource for the inhabitants. If it had not been for the river and the bathes, everything would dry up and we would have migrated to the city to search for an alternative way of living. During Spring and Summer, many visitors come, we sell them some of our crops and provide them with food and drink. After that, we resume our farming activities. This place needs more attention from the officials because there is more pressure on it”.

There are no car parking and no accommodation facilities in harmony with the site to enable its rational exploitation. Cars happen to trample the various plants, and people, except those who are aware of the importance of that natural resource, leave their garbage scattered all over the place.

What was done by the responsible parties?

In this regard, Said Bakhouta, Director of Awlad Stout’s commune services, explains to us that: “Without real touristic projects that promote the regional development, the Bathes will be prone to degradation by small farmers or visitors.” This responsible stated that “Tourist services are almost non-existent, except for some simple and seasonal services that local people offer to visitors”.

Awlad Stout commune, founded in 1992 after it was administratively separated from its neighboring city “Zayo”, found itself unable to face the Bathe’s reality for several reasons. The first reason is the lack of sufficient financial resources to invest in tourism and the economic opportunities that these natural baths provide. Under its young age, as it is argued by its official, the commune has given priority to the basic infrastructures that its inhabitants need, such as roads, bridges, clean drinkable water, hospitals, and schools ... in addition to management expenses, and its vast area (404 km Square) as well as the abundance of scattered small villages. All this makes the mission of the commune so difficult.

For this reason, the commune had to borrow funds from the Collective Equipment Fund of the Ministry of Interior, a fund like a public bank to support local projects, namely basic infrastructures. The commune owes about 500 million cents that must be paid back to the fund.

This financial situation of the commune pushed it, one year ago, to contact the Ministries of Tourism and the Interior, in addition to the East and Nador Regional Council, asking them to contribute to set up an integrated project aimed at valuing the assets of the bath, so that it becomes a sustainable touristic destination that contributes to development without damaging the environment. Have the commune officials got a response? So far, no, as they assert. In addition to that, they do not know the crucial importance of this project in the regional development plan.

Participation and awareness-raising are the beginning of the solution.

To face the challenges Awlad Stout commune faces, and the increasing pressure on the Bathes due to its agricultural and therapeutic benefits, local officials, and civil society associations active in the region believe that capitalizing on this resource relies on two fundamental pillars. The first is participatory democracy and the principle of solidarity, whereby all parties concerned with the issue of these Bathes are involved in taking appropriate decisions, with the help of neighboring communes and provinces, from the feasibility study of the project until its implementation and promotion. The second pillar is awareness-raising among farmers and tourists about the need to preserve the baths and not pollute them to preserve the rights of future generations.