Hot winds and exceptional drought in Morocco, small farmers's debt written off
Morocco, Agriculture, 3/9/2000

Hot winds, coming from the south, are sweeping all over Morocco's western regions, causing unusual high temperatures of more than 30 degrees Celsius for an average of 19 degrees in this period.

According to the weather forecast department, sand storms are also caused by the winds in Morocco which is also affected by drought, called "exceptional" by agriculture minister, Habib El Malki. The minister told the productive sectors commission at the house of representatives that the goals set for cereals production require 200 to 300 mm of rain and a rain shortage not exceeding 30% in comparison with a normal year.

He further explained that unusual cold in the months of December and January, coupled with an absence of rain since mid-January is negatively affecting grain culture.

He announced that the CNCA bank specialized in financing farming has decided to write off debts not exceeding 10,000 DH ($ 1,000) owed by 140,332 small farmers.

He added that the state has paid 76% of the 110 million DH ($ 11 mln) financial commitments to pay for transport expenses of animal feed.

Previous Stories:
  Moroccans pray for rain   (2/25/2000)
  Seminar on agriculture financing in Rabat   (2/9/2000)
  17 African countries in Morocco for farming quality management training   (2/8/2000)

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