Kenitra (Morocco) (AFP) – Mohamed Reouani inspects his barley and alfalfa fields in Ouled Salama, near Kenitra in Morocco. Like dozens of other farmers in his village, he "lost everything" in exceptional floods which recently hit this north-western region.

Published on: 02/13/2026 - 2:13 p.m. Modified on: 02/13/2026 - 7:55 p.m.

“I had around 4 or 5 hectares, I have nothing left,” this 63-year-old farmer told AFP, a few steps from his submerged plots where he will not be able to harvest anything this year.

In Morocco, agriculture is a major sector which accounts for 12% of GDP and around a third of jobs.

In recent weeks, the North African country has experienced unprecedented rainfall which caused, according to the government, "the flooding of 110,000 hectares" in the regions of Larache, Kénitra, Sidi Kacem and Sidi Slimane, in the northwest.

The authorities had to evacuate nearly 188,000 people, housed with their families or in temporary camps.

Until mid-December, the filling rate of dams in Morocco did not exceed 31% and Mr. Reouani, like his neighbors, considered the arrival of heavy rains after seven consecutive years of drought as "a blessing".

The rainfall deficit had led to rationing of their irrigation quotas. Today, the reservoirs are almost 70% full.

In some areas of Mr. Reouani's village, the water level is still around two meters since the last wave of rains, which stopped at the start of the week. Some homes remain isolated by large bodies of water.

Faced with the emergency, the authorities not only evacuated residents but also sheep and cows, particularly in the neighboring village of Ouled Amer.

Not far from a camp set up by the authorities, farmers have set up tents to protect their animals from the cold.

“The water took everything away”

"We have no more cereals or alfalfa left... the water has taken everything away," Ibrahim Bernous, a 32-year-old breeder, told AFP who was able to shelter his livestock but depends, to feed them, on free distributions of fodder from the authorities.

The meteorological situation completely changed from January onwards, as evidenced by the figures from the Ministry of Equipment: almost 9 billion m3 of water inflow into the dams in one month, from January 11 to February 11, as much as the cumulative figure for the last two years.

These record rains were concentrated in the plains of the Gharb and Loukkos, two rivers flowing into the Atlantic and irrigating provinces which are among the most important agricultural areas of the country.

They are home to large cereal farms, livestock breeding and cultivation of red fruits, vegetables and sugar beets intended for export.

But it is the aftermath of the disaster that worries farmers like Chergui al-Alja, 42, the most: "we no longer have any cereals left to feed the livestock, even though they constitute our main source of income."

Livestock breeding was "one of the most affected sectors", Rachid Benali, president of the Moroccan Confederation of Agriculture, confirmed to AFP, stressing that we will have to "wait for the waters to recede for a more precise assessment of the losses". According to Mr. Benali, beet, citrus and vegetable fields were also affected.

On Thursday, the government announced the release of around 300 million euros, including 30 million in direct aid to farmers and breeders, the rest to go to emergency aid, the rehabilitation of road and agricultural infrastructure or the renovation of housing and businesses.

Despite the damage in the northwest, the exceptional rains which fell across the country should "contribute to growth of 4.9%" this year, thanks in particular to "strong agricultural production", the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said in a press release on Thursday.

© 2026 AFP

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