RABAT: When powerful thunderstorms hit Morocco’s arid south, they brought deadly floods but also provided some relief to farmers as the country grapples with its worst drought in nearly 40 years.
The torrential rains at the weekend triggered floods that killed at least 18 people in areas of southern Morocco that straddle the Sahara desert.
While the rain was devastating in part, it also brought some relief to farmers growing crops like almonds, dates and cereals.
“These rains will bring a breath of fresh air” to the south, said agronomist Mohamed Taher Srairi.
“But it has not rained elsewhere, and the country remains under a heavy structural drought.”
The unusual rainfall resulted from a tropical air mass shifting northward, according to Lhoussaine Youabd, spokesman for Morocco’s General Directorate of Meteorology.
Experts say climate change is making extreme weather, such as storms and droughts, more frequent and intense.
Morocco is one of the world’s most water-stressed nations, with frequent droughts affecting a third of the population employed in agriculture.
Near areas of the northwest African country lashed by the weekend’s rain, water levels in dams have risen and groundwater is expected to replenish.
The four Draa Oued Noun dams, which supply areas impacted by the floods in the Ouarzazate region, saw water levels increase by 19 percent to 191 million cubic meters, according to Youssef Ben Hamou, director of the agency managing the barrages.
The region of Ouarzazate, located in Morocco’s south, sits between the Atlantic Ocean, the Atlas Mountains and the Sahara.
Water levels of the large Ouarzazate dam climbed to 69 million cubic meters, roughly 70 percent of its capacity, while levels at the Fask dam rose by 10 million cubic meters in just 24 hours.
“The rains have proved to be a boon for the region, because these reserves will be able to ensure drinking water supply which remains a priority,” said Ben Hamou.
Mohamed Jalil, a water resources consultant, said the downpours would help to replenish soil saturation levels, although that usually requires rainfall over time after a long drought.
“This will bring respite to the oases, particularly for agriculture,” he said.
The psychological impact of the long-awaited rains was also significant, he said, especially after a harsh, dry summer.
The massive rainfall had “brought hope” to the drought-hit area, he said.
The Moroccan government has pledged financial aid to the flooded areas.
During a visit to Ouarzazate this week, Agriculture Minister Mohammed Sadiki announced the allocation of $4.1 million to repair damaged infrastructure, support agriculture and help those affected by the floods.
Although no further downpours are expected in the immediate future, climatologists warn that Morocco must better prepare for weather disasters driven by global warming.
Moroccans should be ready “for new phenomena whose frequency and violence are unknown, given the effects of climate change,” said Mohamed Said Karrouk, a climatology professor at Hassan II University in Casablanca.

TUNIS: Tunisians are expected to take to the streets on Friday to denounce the tumult that’s plagued the country’s upcoming election, with candidates arrested, kicked off the ballot or banned from politics for life.
The newly-formed “Tunisian Network for the Defense of Rights and Freedoms” hopes to draw attention to what it has called a surge in authoritarianism.
“Protesting this Friday is a reaction to the violation of rights and freedoms we’re seeing in Tunisia today. The other reason is seeing some citizens being deprived of their right to run in the presidential vote,” said Mohieddine Lagha, Secretary-General of the Tunisian League for Human Rights.
The North African country’s Independent High Authority for Elections has sparred with judges over which candidates will be allowed to appear on the ballot in the October 6 election.
The commission’s detractors have accused it of lacking independence and acting on behalf of President Kais Saied, who appoints its members.
The commission has rejected organizations that have applied to be election observers, and it has said it will not add three candidates to the ballot who won court appeals challenging the authority’s earlier rejections.
That includes former health minister Abdellatif Mekki, a former member of the Islamist movement Ennahda now running with his own party, Work and Accomplishment. Mekki was arrested in July on charges his attorneys said were political and banned from politics for life.
A court ordered the election authority to put him on the ballot last month, and his candidacy was reinstated for a second time earlier this week. ISIE dismissed the first court’s ruling and has not commented on the most recent one.
“We called for a large participation of the population in this protest as we’re hoping to pressure for a massive mobilization,” Ahmed Neffati, Mekki’s campaign manager, said.
“Tunisians won’t let go of their right for a free and democratic election,” he added.
Despite expectations of a barely-contested vote, Saied has upended Tunisian politics in recent months. Last month he sacked the majority of his cabinet, and his critics decried a wave of arrests and gag orders on leading opposition figures as politically driven.
The International Crisis Group last week said Tunisia was in a “deteriorating situation,” and Human Rights Watch called on the election commission to reinstate the candidates.
“Holding elections amid such repression makes a mockery of Tunisians’ right to participate in free and fair elections,” said Bassam Khawaja, the group’s deputy Middle East and North Africa director.