Cereal Crops: Season Compromised Despite Recent Rainfall

Recent rainfall has brought relief to farmers and livestock breeders—but not only. «It’s good for morale, it stimulates investment, and helps keep the economic machine running in markets, souks, and rural areas,» says Fouad Amraoui, a professor and researcher in hydrology.

Last week, almost all Moroccan regions had significant rainfall. Plus, snowfall has reached high levels in some mountainous areas (Ifrane, Azilal, Demnate, Oukaimden, Ouarzazate, Tichka…). Better, these recent rains and snowfall have positively impacted water reserves and the reservoir fill rate.

As of Monday, February 3, according to the General Directorate of Hydraulics (under the Ministry of Equipment), the reservoir fill rate has reached 4.66 billion cubic meters, or 27.6%.

However, Fouad Amraoui, professor and researcher at Hassan II University, an expert in hydrology and environment, warns that despite the significance of these recent rains, they remain within the seasonal standard norm. «These rains do not make up for the hydrological deficit of the past three months (November, December, and January). While we saw torrential rain in October, it was followed by three exceptionally dry months—traditionally the wettest period of the year,» he explains.

Despite these recent rains, this agricultural season remains critical, as it follows six consecutive years of drought, which have significantly depleted groundwater reserves. Moreover, even though the rainfall has been widespread and abundant, large volumes of water have been lost, particularly in major cities such as Tangier. «Millions of cubic meters have been discharged into wastewater networks, sewers, or simply evaporated due to a lack of large reservoirs and investment in water purification and treatment infrastructure,» notes Amraoui.

Fruit Trees and Vegetables: A Slight Improvement

According to water expert Fouad Amraoui, while cereal crops are beyond recovery, the recent rainfall has been beneficial for fruit trees, vegetables, and other seasonal crops. Based on the sowing and harvesting calendar, the current period aligns with the growing season for fruits and vegetables such as tomatoes, carrots, cauliflower, cucumbers, green beans, peas, lettuce, onions, turnips, sweet potatoes, leeks, and radishes. In other words, spring crops show promising prospects.

 Amin RBOUB