Background and Objectives
Essaouira is a coastal town with 70.000 inhabitants. Its economy relies mainly on tourism and handicraft production. Urban growth of Essaouira is a serious threat to its environment, especially to the coastal area and the dunes surrounding the town.
The project started in 1996 with the support of the Post Graduate Centre for Human settlements of the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium. It greatly contributed to the inclusion of Essaouira in the UNESCO list of World Cultural Heritage in December 2001.
The project focuses on:
- Managing the city cultural heritage
- Working on the Mellah neighbourhood rehabilitation
- Creating a green belt and an urban park
- Greening of the city
Activities
In 2002, the project was institutionalized within the mechanisms of the Essaouira municipalities. Despite having limited resources the project has concentrated on:
- implementation of the green belt project funded by the TotalElfFina foundation
- Development of activities with the support of Eterbeek ( Belgium ) through decentralised cooperation mechanisms
- Integration into the network of urban centres that are supported by the regional LA21 project in the Marrakech Tensift Al Haouz region.
Ensemble sauvegardons Eassaouira (French 2002)
Localising Agenda 21 - Planification des action pour un developpement urban durable – Essaouira, Maroc (2000)
Localising Agenda 21 - Action Planning for Sustainable Urban Development – Essaouira, Morocco (2000)
English Version
Arabic Version
Project Contact
Le Coordinateur
Agenda 21 Local d'Essaouira
75 rue d'Agadir
Essaouira, Maroc
Tel: (+212) 44 47 67 17
Fax: (+221) 44 47 67 85
E-mail: Ag21ess@iam.net.ma
