KINGDOM OF MOROCCO

MINISTRY OF SPATIAL DEVELOPMENT, WATER AND ENVIRONMENT

STRATEGY FOR SPATIAL PLANNING AND

RENEWAL OF URBAN POLICY:

THE SOFA OF CENTRAL METROPOLITAN AREA

STATE AND ORIENTATION OF THE SNAT

1. The national

territory is overall

structured around

poles of growth

essentially

consituted by

large cities: the

strategic nodes of

our economic

development

2. The poles of

growth are the

principal places for

wealth creation (2/3

of the national

output).

3. They are the main

engines of job creation

and the principal

source for financial

redistribution schemes.

Seven poles of growth

85% of the National

Growth Potential

The great challenge of

international

competitiveness will

mainly take place in

cities

-

-

STATE AND ORIENTATION OF THE SNAT4. – An urban system

with two main groups of

cities : The « economic »

Cities, net producers of

value that feed the

national budget and the

« State » Cities that have

the major function to

frame the territory and

that rely on the national

public budget

5. This division reflects

the national unity and

solidarity objectives with

the central state

operating territorial

redistribution, ensuring

spatial equity of basic

social conditions

6. But the long term

sustainibility of this

macro-economic urban

system appears to be

fragile.

Large risks of a break in this

situation due to imbalances

between real growth and

needed growth and public

financial means

Main signs of these breaks:

•Uncontrolled rapid urban growth (anarchical urban extentions, insufficient building stocks, proliferation of illegal housing, with delays in

equipments)

•Small cities that concentrate rural issues, medium-sized cities with unorganised neighbourhoods

•Metropolitan areas that are facing severe lack of public transport and real estate speculation which seriously impact on their development (the

case of Casablanca typically illustrates urban dynamism coupled with large dysfunctions, with an impact on the

economic efficency of cities and the overall competitiveness of Moroccan economy)

•Proliferation of pockets of poverty concentrated in some neighbourhods

•….

STATE AND ORIENTATION OF THE SNAT

STATE AND ORIENTATION OF THE SNAT

The overall

competitiveness will

depend on the capacity

of our cities to

produce growth

It is urgent that these motors of

growth experience a levelling

up, aimed first at economic

functions of cities

A major and historical reversal of the economic logic and an overall questioning

of practices and options of urban policy. The economic thinking is now based on

competitiveness which depends on global efficiency of the socio-economic system

and its environment

Which tools?

Which approaches? In

order to deal with

metropolisation and

international levelling up of

cities

•The main pole of growth is located

directly within the littoral area

(51% of GDP)

THE CASE OF THE CENTRAL METROPOLITAN AREA (CMA)

•Today, the CMA represents

25% of the national

population

•38 % of the urban

population,

• Generates the bulk of public

financial resources (67% of

fiscal revenues) and ensures

the national redistribution

•A new type of region

THE CMA IN FIGURES

•Need for a new approach to urban planning and

development

Upgrading Casablanca’s infrastructure and urbanisation: its

main issues are a combination of economic, socio, land use and

urban factors.

Deficiencies and dysfunctions should be tackled from an overall

perspective. The major planning issue of the CMA, and to the

overall country, starts in Casablanca

ASSESSMENT AND ORIENTATION

THREE ILLUSTRATIVE

CASES

-The land use map features a strange picture with a rapid increase of prices as of the periphery

-This creates an imbalance of land prices in relation to the income level of the majority of the population, implying a series of

cumulative perverse effects related to all aspects of urbanisation

The dysfunction of the land market impacts on Casablanca and the overall region and largely explains the

irrational aspect of the agglomeration

Hyper-densification over 150km2

•Illegal industrial and housing development

ASSESSMENT COMPONENTS OF THE SOFA

LAND USE SHAPES THE ORGANISATION OF THE CITY

and reflects the combination of 2 related phenomena: : over-densification and

physical sprawl on the one hand, and reinforcement of urban exclusion on the

other hand

ECONOMIC AND GOVERNANCE CRISIS

THROUGH THE LAND USE ISSUE

ASSESSMENT COMPONENTS OF THE SOFA

- Minimum annual wage is 23.000 DH and 67% of civil servants receive a wage of less than

-45.000 DH

- « Popular » income stands between 20.000 to 30.000 DH annually.

- The level for accessing « popular » housing is the double of minimum wage

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN 60% OF THE POPULATION

DOES NOT HAVE ACCESS TO THE MARKET?

Between different forms of

over-densification and slums

are a wide range of more less illegal

development stemming

from space constraints :

the issues are structural

ECONOMIC AND GOVERNANCE CRISIS

THROUGH THE LAND USE ISSUE

ASSESSMENT COMPONENTS OF THE SOFA

THE MAIN METROPOLITAN FUNCTIONS (business, financial activities, firms management and

business services) start from the core of Hassan II-Zerktouni towards the South-East (Anfa) and the

South along a classical axis oriented towards to the aiport

A growing trend

It just needs to be better organised

It is crucial de deal with the weaknesses of the

metropolitan area (catching up and

development of capacities for better

integration in the international economy)

This requires a synchronic and integrated

approach of three strategies:

functional strategy

spatial strategy

Transport strategy

NO SPATIAL DOCUMENT TODAY THAT

RESPONDS TO THESE CHALLENGES

CONCLUSION

WHICH TOOLS?

THE SPATIAL AND FUNCTIONAL PLAN OF THE CENTRAL

METROPOLITAN AREA

It is a new planning document that raises the urban

development issues from the angle of economic development

it is not a descriptive document. It is a framework and

indicative document mainly aimed at ensuring public policy

coherence in relation to :

1) Morocco’s key asset: the CMA

2) National economic priorities decisions

3) Main challenges faced by the country.

It can be defined according to the scale, the content and the

procedure

• The appropriate scale for the CMA ranging from 15 000

et 20 000 is: 1/100.000é

• The spatial approach is based on three pillars: the

consolidated urban areas, the extended urban areas and

the peripheries, requiring more specific scales: 1/50.000é

MAIN CHARACTERISTICS

THE SCALE

A Strategic Planning Document between

the SDAU (1/50.000) and the SRAT (1/200.000)

The relevant area is not the

administrative region

The area is defined by a

complex set of spatial relations

that stretches up to 240 Km

4 Sub-units

Rabat-Kénitra

The extension of the South

and South-West (El Jadida)

The Great Casablanca

The continental extensions

The area of the CMA

THE CONTENT

Both Spatial and financial

The spatial analysis•In addition to the traditional urban

functions (working, housing..) provide

advantage to the economic functions,

in particular metropolitan functions

The financial analysis •Based on the tension between the

demand and the offer of credits

related to the effective

implementation

for modernisation actions

Infrastructure

Transport

Public equipment

Housing

Land use

Productive activities

ServicesIdentification of dysfunctions and

definition of projects of upgrading

involving

Massive public financing

URBAN BASE ECONOMIC BASE

It is an exercice of spatial-planning integration

THE MAIN OPTIONS

CONDITIONS FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION

AN APPROPRIATE GOVERNANCE FRAMEWORK (closely linked to the institutional, financial,

and political environment and to the implementation process)

C’est Doubler l’effort en deux directions

-Think about the means to enhance relationships among main economic

development actors through a share allocation of responsibilities in order

to better articulate decentralisation and deconcentration.

•Provide a better visibility to the existing policies

•Ensure a better regulation of the different political administrative systems

-Adaptation et strengthening of capacity building of

actors responsible for city development strategies

-Know how development related to strategic planning, prospective et

and monitoring of the projects

PUBLIC ORGANISATION CAPACITY BUILDING