2024-03-02 02:26:00
A Puma helicopter from the Royal Armed Forces mobilized to rescue residents injured during the Al Haouz earthquake. Credit: Médi1TV
The Ministry of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Innovation and the National Center for Scientific and Technical Research (CNRST) launched, Friday in Rabat, the project entitled “Strengthening Morocco’s resilience to earthquakes”, intended to consolidate seismic monitoring networks and the capacities of stakeholders in this area.
Initiated in partnership with UNESCO, this project, which will be implemented by the CNRST through its National Institute of Geophysics (ING) division, aims to “further strengthen seismic monitoring networks and the capacities of Moroccan executives in seismology, to evaluate early warning systems, and to identify needs for geographical expansion as well as operational and technical gaps.”
The project, financed by Japan to the tune of 9 million dirhams, intervenes in response to the constraints observed during the Al Haouz earthquake, and which demonstrated the need to deepen knowledge on earthquakes and to explore the best strategies for nature to strengthen Morocco’s resilience to face such disasters, specifies the CNRST in a press release.
In a speech on this occasion, the Minister of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Innovation, Abdellatif Miraoui, indicated that the launch of this project aligns with the strategic orientations of the Transformation Acceleration Plan. of the ecosystem of higher education, scientific research and innovation (PACTE ESRI 2030), aiming, among other things, to establish the basis of scientific research of excellence responding to national priorities and mobilizing the potential of international cooperation.
This collaboration between Morocco and Japan in the field of seismology looks promising, offering the opportunity to take advantage of Japan’s globally recognized expertise and excellence in scientific advances and technological innovations. , he observed, specifying that it will also benefit from the valuable contribution of the Moroccan scientific community specializing in seismology and geophysics.
“Our country has a rich scientific potential thanks to two public research institutes and 21 university research structures dedicated to geophysics and geosciences,” he noted, noting that this ecosystem offers abundant opportunities for cooperation and enriching exchanges with international partners, paving the way for significant progress in the understanding and management of seismic phenomena.
For her part, the director of the CNRST, Jamila El Alami, highlighted Moroccan expertise in managing the effects of earthquakes, recalling that the Kingdom has a seismic monitoring and alert system deployed national scale, managed by the CNRST through its ING division. Likewise, a project is being carried out with UNESCO on the impact of tsunamis on the Moroccan coasts as part of the Tsunami Ready program, she indicated.
In this sense, she noted that the CNRST has become a national leader in this area through important major activities relating to monitoring, research, training, awareness-raising and the dissemination of knowledge in terms of evaluation and prevention of seismic risks, calling for the strengthening of cooperation, both at the national and international level, in order to further consolidate the geophysics and seismology sector in Morocco.
For his part, the Japanese ambassador to Morocco, Kuramitsu Hideaki, indicated that this project aims to strengthen the national seismic evaluation network as well as the anti-seismic response capacities of local authorities, noting that his country has decided to provide support to Morocco by granting an envelope of 9 million dirhams to UNESCO as part of this project.
He took this opportunity to salute the efforts undertaken by the Moroccan authorities in the management of the Al Haouz earthquake, specifying that “Japan, a country where powerful followingshocks occur constantly, is aware of the devastation caused by earthquakes.”
As for the director and representative of UNESCO for the Maghreb, Eric Falt, he noted that this project, whose implementation will be spread over a year in close coordination with national institutions, is part of the continuity of support made by the Organization in Morocco in the field of reducing the risks linked to earthquakes and tsunamis, and demonstrates UNESCO’s commitment to working in concert with local stakeholders.
The project aims to help Morocco better understand seismic risks and prepare properly for them through the implementation of awareness and education initiatives, aimed at informing and preparing populations for the risks incurred, he said, adding that it also aims to strengthen the national earthquake monitoring network and raise the level of skills of Moroccan professionals in seismology.
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