Saving Endemic Moroccan Fruit Tree Species
Context
The genetic heritage and ancestral favourites of native varieties of arboriculture in Morocco’s northern Tetouan-Tangier-Al Hoceima (TTA) region – such as fig, carob, olive, plum, pear, peach, and grape – are experiencing a steep decline, and some varieties have gone extinct. Arboriculture in the region makes up 11% of agricultural land, and employs 8% of the national workforce. Arboriculture is threatened by destructive farming practices leading to degraded soils and polluted ecosystems. Due to those practices, 50% of ancient fig cultivars in the TTA region are subject to genetic degradation, and are at risk of extinction.
The decline has led to increased domestic demand and prices relative to other fruit. In addition, through the COVID crisis many small-scale farmers were struck by dramatic declines in revenue due to their dependency on international agribusiness for providing seeds and fertiliser.
The socio-economic indicators of the population of the province of Ouezzane (where this project will be situated), established by the General Population and Housing Census in 2014, present a situation which is quite concerning:
- 39.9% of all residents are illiterate (43.7% in rural areas)
- 13.5% of people are classified as vulnerable.
In this regard, the project at hand aims to significantly contribute to:
- The creation of sustainable livelihoods for rural families through the extension of fruit arboriculture and the support of cooperatives of specialised arborists in organic farming.
- The development and promotion of local species to ensure organic production as they are less demanding in inputs and maintenance (carob, fig, Rosaceous plants) with more emphasis on local varieties of carob and fig trees.
- The establishment of an educational program about the environment and the role of farmers, agricultural cooperatives and local associations, environmental clubs, and rural and urban schools in protecting the environment.
- An important enhancement of local fruit production to satisfy the food needs of the local population.
- The improvement of incomes of farmers, rural women, and beneficiaries.
Planting Partner
The High Atlas Foundation is a Moroccan association and a U.S. 501(c)(3) nonprofit organisation founded in 2000 by former Peace Corps Volunteers committed to furthering sustainable development. HAF supports Moroccan communities to take action in implementing human development initiatives. HAF promotes organic agriculture, women’s empowerment, youth development, education, and health.
HAF is guided by a participatory approach in all projects. This begins with dialogue including all community members from a range of age, gender, education, income, land ownership, religious, and ethnic groups representative of the project location. HAF facilitates activities including dream mapping and other techniques to identify priorities. Action plans are developed from the priorities identified by beneficiaries. Such meeting, talking, and planning enhances the community’s decision-making capability for future projects.
In rural Morocco, traditional gendered divisions of production also extend to natural resource management. Women are often the main food and water collectors while men often control land access. However, HAF has had important success at building the abilities of women’s and girls’ cooperatives in maintaining nurseries, value-adding activities, and exporting products. A foundation for success is the HAF rights-based Imagine Empowerment Workshops, which build vision and confidence and provide the platform for increasing self-reliance. Women (18+) and girls (14-18) participate in four-day, 32-hour, rights-based workshops (with structured activities following an established curriculum) which trained HAF staff facilitate.
The workshops help women reconsider traditional attitudes and concerns, and in turn help their family members do the same, replacing them with an understanding of the benefits of training and employment for the individual, the family, and the community. These occur in parallel with workshops engaging men in similar processes and economic opportunities, which underscores an innovative approach that advances equitable growth. The female participants create and implement action/business plans. The establishment of fruit tree nurseries enables these women to register and run cooperatives for gainful employment.
HAF builds the capacities of agricultural cooperatives with USAID’s Farmer-to-Farmer Program, which HAF has administered since July 2019. Through 2023, HAF will connect 70 volunteer experts with members of 80 cooperatives and education centres. HAF assists in building skills with rural people in food safety, financial management, and creating agricultural business plans, including fig and carob planting and processing with cooperatives in Ouezzane. Since 2016, HAF has created 16 and strengthened more than 100 cooperatives and associations, particularly with women and youth (reaching two-thirds participation).
Since 2003, HAF has planted 4 million trees in 24 provinces in Morocco, benefitting approximately 40,000 people. The varieties include: almond, apple, argan, avocado, carob, cherry, cypress, date, eucalyptus, fig, grape, jujube, lemon, olive, orange, pear, pine, plum, pomegranate, prickly pear, quince, and walnut. Since January 2020, HAF, with local community and government partners, has planted 2 million native fruit seeds in 15 tree nurseries that are located in eight provinces. Free lenders of land to HAF are the High Commission of Waters and Forest (including near three national parks); Ministry of Culture, Youth, and Sports; Ministry of Education; Moroccan Jewish Community; and local cooperatives. To date, HAF has monitored approximately 900,000 trees and attained an 82% survival rate. Since 2015, HAF has engaged 602 schools (more than 100,000 students) in 24 provinces in planting 58,000 trees within the school community and conducting environmental education activities. HAF has a tree planting and monitoring team of 21 people.
The Project
This and all HAF’s agroforestry projects are managed by the people who plant, irrigate, maintain, harvest, and gain income from them. The nursery will use certified plants registered in the official catalogue of Morocco. In order for HAF and its partners to plant 400,000 native fig, carob, peach, pear, and plum seeds and cuttings, the land preparation and the installation of drip irrigation (and a solar pump, well, and basin) will begin in March 2022. The nursery will include two greenhouses for seeds to sprout in trays all year round. The primary nursery caretaker and seasonal workers are supported with training and are from local communities.
Starting in November 2023, the 400,000 tree saplings will be distributed in the TTA region, emphasising the project’s participatory nature, while amplifying the region of environmental impact. Importantly, 120,000 of the trees will be planted on 600 hectares of public domain granted by DREF to the 19 villages of Zefrioune. The region was chosen deliberately to improve farming practices near the spring of the Oued Loukkos river, feeding protected wetlands currently suffering from eutrophication. The nursery area will be the heart of the project dedicated to the multiplication of endemic varieties, providing biodiversity and economic stability for farmers of TTA and Morocco.
Through genetic analysis and selective planting, genetic diversity will be maximised, helping to safeguard against diseases and the effects of climate change. HAF partners with the Department of Water and Forests (DREF) in TTA and has received an in-kind lending of four hectares of land for a tree nursery for the native fruit varieties in the Zefrioune municipality (Ouezzane province). Diverse fig tree populations will not just help ensure future adaptability and production of these varieties but will preserve pollinators and maintain healthy soils too. The trees will be provided to farming families (7,000 people; 19 villages) and education centres in TTA, who will be the sole beneficiaries of the yields of these trees. By planting keystone species, such as fig, which enrich the soil with nutrients, retain water, and attract unique local pollinators, this project will provide the farmers with the stability and independence needed to withstand future crises.
This project involves: a) completing the pre-registry of the tree planting layout to ensure productive growing; b) collaboration with the General Directorate of Hydraulics to ensure water conservation; c) completing the registry and evaluation with GPS tracking six months after transplanting trees from the nursery; and d) applying effective methods to protect soil from erosion. Through HAF’s application of a tree monitoring system that integrates community members in data collection, HAF will strengthen sustainability and address challenges quickly.
The fig nursery will serve as a scientific teaching garden containing all ten regionally endemic fig varieties, training farmers in production and value-added processing techniques, and creating a fig growers’ cooperative to further explore opportunities in cultivation and marketing. Stakeholders will increase production capacity, partnerships, and means to add value and reach a consistent standard and quality of product necessary to enter more rewarding markets.
The project will help local participants gain understanding of biodiversity issues through data gathering and monitoring and free and open access to all data. Periodic and final reports will be published through the HAF social media platforms and website for widespread dissemination, and customarily include interviews with all stakeholders: caretakers, technicians, farmers, and cooperative and association members.
See more about this project on Restoration here.
Climate Solution
Tree plantations on degraded land
Degraded pasture and agricultural lands, or other lands corrupted from uses such as mining, are ripe for strategic planting of trees and perennial biomass. This can take a variety of forms—from seeding dense plots of diverse indigenous species to introducing a single exotic species as a plantation crop.
Fast-growing, dense plots of native species show that afforestation can draw down carbon, while supporting biodiversity, addressing human needs for firewood, food, and medicine, and providing ecosystem services such as flood and drought protection.