Rabat - Saba:
The Director General of Morocco's General Directorate of Meteorology, Mohamed Dkhissi, announced Friday evening that 2024 will be the hottest year ever recorded in the country.
This comes after record temperatures exceeded 47 degrees Celsius in several regions, most notably Marrakesh and Beni Mellal. This year will also mark the sixth year of drought in the Kingdom.
This came during the presentation of the Directorate's annual report on the "State of the Climate in Morocco for 2024" in the capital, Rabat, according to the official Moroccan News Agency.
Dkhissi said, "Last year was recorded as the hottest in Morocco's history," explaining that this record is consistent with the worrying global climate trend, as climate analyses have shown an increase in temperature changes, especially during the fall and winter seasons.
He added that the summer of 2024 witnessed intense heat waves, most notably a temperature of 47.7°C in Beni Mellal and 47.6°C in Marrakech on July 23.
Regarding rainfall, the Moroccan official explained that 2024 recorded an average rainfall deficit of 24.8 percent, reflecting the ongoing drought for the sixth consecutive year.
However, some regions experienced heavy rainfall, particularly in the Atlas Mountains, the southeast, and the eastern region, particularly during September. However, this rainfall was not sufficient to change the overall trend, according to the same official.
He pointed out that these extreme weather events caused flash floods and human losses, and also led to the temporary reappearance of Lake Iriki (southeast Morocco) after more than fifty years of complete drought.
Al-Dakhisi explained that 2024 was also the driest year since the 1960s, noting that low snowfall, high temperatures, and infrequent rainfall all contributed to the exacerbation of the country's structural drought.
The drought, which has been affecting Morocco for the seventh consecutive year, has become one of the most prominent challenges facing the national economy, particularly the agricultural sector, which constitutes the backbone of the gross domestic product and provides a source of income for approximately 40 percent of the workforce, according to data from the Moroccan Ministry of Agriculture.