The Moroccan Agency for Agricultural Development (ADA) has announced the creation of a 5,200-ha perimeter irrigated with desalinated seawater in the Dakhla-Oued Ed-Dahab region of Western Sahara under the public-private partnership (PPP).
The site will develop early commercial horticulture, especially under greenhouses, other high-value-added crops and fodder crops. 30 million m3 of water treated by the desalination plant in Dakhla will be used for land irrigation and 7 million m3 per year will be directed to supply drinking water to the city of Dakhla. The wind farm will be built in the region by Dakhla Water & Energy Company (DAWEC), a subsidiary of Engie Group and Nareva, a subsidiary of the Moroccan group Al Mada.
The project will create an annual added value of more than 1 billion Moroccan dirhams (US$91 million) and more than 10,000 permanent jobs. 219 projects will be implemented on the irrigated perimeter, these are 100 small projects from 5 to 10 ha, 78 medium projects from 10 to 40 ha, 34 large projects from 40 to 147 ha and seven aggregator projects with an area of over 147 ha.
