• Rainfall since December rose 95% year on year, above winter averages

• Dam fill rates reached 46%, with some reservoirs at full capacity

• Drought cost Morocco one million farm jobs and heavy output losses

Morocco’s Minister of Equipment and Water, Nizar Baraka, announce yesterday the country has emerged from a seven-year drought cycle. Speaking before Parliament, he said rainfall recorded since December was 95% higher than a year earlier and 17% above the winter average.

Average dam fill levels have reached 46%, with some strategic reservoirs already at full capacity. According to Morocco’s General Directorate of Meteorology, 2022 was the hottest year recorded in the country in the past 40 years.

A heavy toll

The return of rainfall has brought relief to the agricultural sector, which has suffered significant losses in recent years.

Hit by prolonged water shortages, heat waves, and shrinking cultivated areas, cereal production fell by 42% to 3.3 million tons in the 2023/2024 season, according to FAO data. The decline forced the country to increase wheat imports to meet domestic demand.

In the livestock sector, persistent drought degraded pastures, drove up animal feed prices, and reduced meat output. Climate-related pressures peaked in February 2025, when King Mohammed VI urged Moroccans to refrain from sacrificing sheep during the Eid al-Adha celebration scheduled for June. It was the first such call since 1996, reflecting herd losses caused by drought and rising prices.

Official data show Morocco has lost 38% of its cattle and sheep population since 2016.

Overall, the government estimates that drought and water stress have cost the country one million agricultural jobs. In response, Rabat has accelerated desalination projects aimed at supplying 60% of drinking water needs from treated seawater by 2030, up from 25% currently.

Espoir Olodo