A delegation from the Dutch embassy in Morocco visited the Polytechnic University in Benguerir last week. This agricultural university is closely linked to the major phosphate company Office Cherifien des Phosphates (OCP). Morocco hosts more than half of the world's mineral phosphate reserves.
Two years ago, the Moroccan university signed an agreement with Wageningen UR for student exchange and research cooperation in agriculture. According to the Dutch agricultural counselor in Rabat, the phosphate factory OCP wants to collaborate with Dutch companies in the field of agricultural technology in Morocco.
On February 16 and 17, Ambassador Jeroen Roodenburg and several embassy colleagues visited the Mohamed VI University (UM6P), west of Marrakech. The ultra-modern university complex is dedicated to research and education in sustainable agriculture and also to the technical and environmental aspects of phosphate mining.
The focus is on supporting African countries in improving their agricultural systems, food security, and rural development. For this reason, the university focuses not only on the technical sides of agriculture but also on the great diversity of cultural and social aspects of African agriculture. Students come not only from Morocco but also from other African countries, often with a scholarship from the phosphate company OCP.
The university pays special attention to efficient water use in agriculture, because water is scarce in large parts of Africa, as well as in the Arab world. There is much to gain in efficient water use and precision agriculture, where Dutch expertise is also welcome.
In this way, Moroccan, African, and Dutch technologies can be combined to improve food systems and provide farmers with a good livelihood, the embassy in Rabat reports.