King Mohammed continues tour to Fez

King Mohammed VI, accompanied by Prince Moulay Rachid, arrived in Fez on Tuesday night coming from Oujda and Taza as part of a tour that took him to several wilaya, prefectures and provinces of the kingdom.

Before leaving Oujda in the morning, the king inaugurated the avenue bearing his name and launched works of a drinking water supply system meant to provide the city with water from the Machraa Hammadi Dam. The undertaking, worth $75 million US, will help meet the city's potable water needs till the year 2010.

The royal party later stopped at the Sidi Lahcen rural community, 50 km from the city of Taourirt, where the sovereign inaugurated the Laghrass dam, dubbed "Hassan II Dam."

The 275 million cubic meter capacity dam was jointly financed for a total cost of about $105 million (1.05 billion DHS) by the Kuwaiti Fund for Arab Economic Development and the Islamic Development Bank.

King Mohammed VI also heard explanations on the $5.7 million relocation in the vicinity of 1,200 families expropriated to make room for the dam facilities.

In Taza, King Mohammed VI launched works of a regional plan to supply power to several areas not connected to the city mains and was briefed on several local projects, namely the Oued Louta Dam and more power and water facilities for the region.

The royal tour is to wind up this Wednesday with a trip to Meknes.