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The program also made it possible to enshrine the expected effects in all completed projects, thus contributing to improving the standard of living of rural families, particularly through opening up and providing basic services to all targeted municipalities, added Mr. Akhannouch, who was responding to a central question in the House of Advisors, as part of the monthly session on the theme ”the Program for Reducing Territorial and Social Disparities”.
In this sense, the Head of Government praised the quality of the monitoring and the effectiveness of the planned investments, carried out at the different stages of the program, noting that the work of the regional committees for the development of rural areas and mountain areas was accompanied by a study of the situation of local authorities, through the development of maps documenting the location of spatial disparities in relation to the sectors concerned, in order to guide and link investments and thus respond to needs and priorities.
In this regard, he indicated that seven annual work plans have been developed for each region, agreed between the National Commission for the Development of Rural and Mountain Areas and the twelve regional committees, noting that the budgets allocated to the development of these plans amount, at the end of October 2023, to 43.61 billion dirhams, including 18.19 billion dirhams as a contribution to the Rural Development Fund for Mountain Areas (41.71% of the allocated allocations).
Mr. Akhannouch specified that the total allocations committed amount to approximately 42 billion dirhams, and the total disbursements to more than 31 billion dirhams, equivalent to 96% and 71% respectively of the total allocations allocated, stressing that these are record rates which reflect the degree of commitment and seriousness which accompanied the implementation of this Royal project.
On this occasion, he noted that the budget allocated to mountain areas in the development of the same annual plans represents a share of 74.26% of the total planned investment, amounting to 35.80 billion dirhams, including the contribution of the Rural Development Fund for Mountain Areas, which amounted to more than 14.60 billion dirhams, or approximately 74% of the total contribution of the Fund.
The Head of Government also noted that the importance of the financial allocations mentioned was significantly reflected in the diversity of achievements on the ground and their territorial distribution, targeting a total of 1,243 local authorities, including 140 communities comprising rural centers, for the benefit of a total rural population of 14 million people, stressing that these annual plans include certain urban areas which experience regular flows and interactions of the rural population, since the planned projects covered 91 urban municipalities.
Regarding the aspect of opening up and strengthening rural roads, Mr. Akhannouch cited the construction and maintenance of 19,440 kilometers of rural roads and tracks, and the construction and reconstruction of 177 technical installations, while 4,892 kilometers are being completed, specifying that the mountainous regions have seen the completion of about 65% of the construction and maintenance operations of roads and tracks of 12,525 km.
Thanks to these achievements, the number of municipalities with good access to categories (5) and (6), which is the highest category in the ranking and which has access to all basic services, has increased by 221 additional municipalities, from 817 in 2016 to 1,038 at the end of 2022.
As for the axis of extension of the drinking water and electricity supply network, 667 drinking water installations were completed and the network was expanded with 1,084 km of channels for the supply of this vital material, in addition to the completion of 26,318 individual and mixed connection operations and fountains.
By targeting mountain areas with 491 drinking water systems and 82% of individual and mixed connections and fountains, the number of municipalities belonging to categories (5) and (6) according to the drinking water connection index increased from 791 in 2016 to 919 at the end of 2022, an increase of 128 municipalities, including 95 in mountainous areas.
Regarding rural electrification, Mr. Akhannouch explained that work has been carried out to electrify 998 douars, in addition to the extension of the electricity network over a length of 997 km, while the mountainous areas have seen the electrification of 821 douars, or about 82% of the total area of rural electrification operations, so that the number of municipalities in category (6), increased, according to the electricity connection index, from 816 in 2016 to 1,212 at the end of 2022, an increase of 396 municipalities.
Regarding the axis of rehabilitation of basic equipment in the education sector, Mr. Akhannouch said that 2,894 operations related to the construction, reconstruction, expansion and rehabilitation of infrastructure in the education sector were carried out at a rate of about 76%, and the extension and maintenance of educational establishments in mountainous areas with 1,712 operations, in addition to 962 operations for the acquisition of school transport buses and 139 operations for equipping educational spaces, stressing that the ranking of municipalities, according to the index of access to educational infrastructure, recorded the strengthening of categories (5) and (6), with 78 additional municipalities, the number of municipalities in this category having increased from 669 in 2016 to 747 at the end of 2022.
According to the educational infrastructure quality index, the number of municipalities in categories (5) and (6) has increased to 56 municipalities, with the number of municipalities in this category increasing from 346 in 2016 to 402 at the end of 2022.
In the field of health, Mr. Akhannouch added, 790 operations of construction, reconstruction, maintenance, extension and rehabilitation of basic health infrastructure were carried out, including 66% for mountainous areas, while the extension and maintenance of health facilities involved 518 operations, in addition to the completion of approximately 766 acquisitions of ambulances and mobile units, and 640 operations of equipping health centers and dispensaries, which contributed to improving the ranking of municipalities in categories 5 and 6, according to the index of access to health infrastructure, with 94 additional municipalities, thus bringing the number of municipalities in this category from 640 in 2016 to 734 at the end of 2022.
Regarding the health infrastructure quality index, according to the Head of Government, the number of municipalities in categories (5 and 6) has been increased by 370 municipalities, bringing the number of this category from 425 municipalities in 2016 to 795 at the end of 2022.
2024-07-19 10:00:20