« Look at these beautiful ears of wheat », proudly exclaims the Ethiopian scientist Wuletaw Tadesse Degu, inspecting a field, near Rabat, sown with drought-tolerant seeds, which have become « essential » for a country threatened by climate change like Morocco. The small rural town of Marchouch, 70 kilometers southeast of the capital, has been home since 2013, over an area of 120 hectares, to a major experimental station of the International Center for Agricultural Research in Arid Zones (Icarda) which develops varieties, particularly cereals, that are resilient to climatic hazards. Its fields of wheat and barley, green and with full ears, contrast with the critical situation in the country where the agricultural season is compromised by a sixth consecutive year of drought.
Low rainfall has reduced the area sown with cereals from 3.7 million in 2023 to 2.5 million hectares planned for 2024, according to the Moroccan Central Bank. This year, cereal production should be halved to 25 million quintals compared to 55.1 million in 2023, pushing the country towards more imports, according to the same source. “The difference in quality between our land and that of other farmers is striking. It becomes essential to adopt resilient seeds and deploy them quickly,” explains to AFP Mr. Tadesse, head of the soft wheat improvement program at Icarda, which has six laboratories and a gene bank in Rabat. Potential According to the Ethiopian expert, the potential of these varieties also lies in improving yield: in 2023, cereal productivity was on average one to two tonnes per hectare in Morocco. In Marchouch, it was four tonnes per hectare with only 200 millimeters of rain – half of what the region normally receives -, thanks to drought-resistant varieties but also to optimal agricultural management: choice of the right time for sowing, suitable quantities and exceptional use of irrigation (10 mm of water on part of the 120 hectares).
