Cattle breeding and territorial development in the mountains in the Beni Mellal Khenifra region

Absract

Cattle breeding is one of the agricultural activities practiced by the majority of the mountainous population in the Beni Mellal Khenifra region, with the dominance of small livestock breeders, as it is characterized by its low profitability in light of the physical, natural and organizational constraints that limit its effectiveness, continuity and the possibility of development. Which leads to the possibility of abandoning it or relying on it as a complementary activity in some cases. Thus, the activity of raising livestock contributes to the creation of the desired territorial development in the mountains only for some limited families, especially those with capital derived from immigration or foreign investors from the mountainous region.

Introducing

According to the majority of mountain families, agriculture is characterized by low yields, and does not contribute significantly to improving the living conditions, except in a few cases that have used foreign investments, especially foreigners from the mountainous region, or the region’s people who migrate abroad or at home. Although there have been some transformations in mountain agriculture in light of the Green Morocco Plan, this plan focused on farmers whose ownership exceeds 5 hectares, and overlooked a large number of mountain farmers who do not meet this condition and do not have investment potential; therefore, agricultural transformations remained limited in a few mountain families, especially in the Moulouya region.

1. The Thoughtful Place :

Map No. 1

Source: Digital Altitude Map

The Beni Mellal Khenifra region is located in central Morocco, where its formation, after the regional division approved in 2015, resulted in the adoption of the advanced regionalization policy, which brought amendments to all regions of Morocco, due to the 2011 constitution.

The Beni Mellal Khenifra region is a strategic destination, with its presence on the large tourist hub, Fez-Meknes-Casablanca. It also has a diverse area in terms of terrain units, and includes a large part of the Middle and High Atlas, the monastery area, the Khenifra basin, part of the Central Plateau, the Phosphate Plateau and the Tadala Plain.

This region extends over an area of 28 374 square kilometers, and the mountainous area occupies about 65% of the area of the region, (Khenifra region, Azilal province and part of the Beni Mellal province) The boundaries of the administrative region are as follows: on the north it is bordered by the Rabat-Salé-Kenitra region, on the north-east it is bordered by the Fes-Meknes region, on the south and south-west it is bordered by the Daraa Tafilalet region, and on the west it is bordered by Casablanca Settat and Marrakech-Safi

2.The developmental repercussions of livestock breeding activity on mountain families and the problem of pastures

Cattle breeding in the mountains in the Beni Mellal Khenifra region is characterized by its weak developmental repercussions on families, as a result of the dominance of small livestock breeders. They suffer from multiple constraints that prevent the development of the mountain economy by providing an adequate source of livelihood that covers various family needs.

3.The mountainous population of the Beni Mellal-Khenifra region depends heavily on sheep and goat farming

Chart No. 1: The quality of cattle approved in the mountain communities studied in the Beni Mellal Khenifra region

Source: Fieldwork 2020

Mountain families are very interested in raising sheep and goats, especially in the area of Boutfarda, Aglamam Azgza and Ait M’hamed. Sheep are more profitable than goats, but sheep along with cows are expensive because they need fodder compared to goats grazing in the forest.

Sheep farming ranks first at the level of a group of mountain groups Koawli with about 64.2%, Ouizghat with about 64.1%, Tafni with about 63.7%, Ait M’hamed with 56.1%, Ait Ishaq with about 51.6%, Laqbab with 45.9%, and Ghassalin with about 41.2%.  While in the community of Boufarda we find the importance of sheep and goats by about 45.8%, while in the community of Aklamam Azkza by about 42.1%.

It is noted that the areas where olives prevail as well as almond trees have a low percentage of goat breeding, and in many cases there is no quasigt, first and foremost, by virtue of the fact that this type of cattle climbs trees, eats their kernels, and affects their productivity and fruits. Consequently, families avoid raising goats and are satisfied with sheep, and some other families add a limited number of cattle.

There are also other mountain communities that combine the three types of cattle, which are sheep, goats and cows. Such as the commune of Tizi Nisli with about 11.6%, Aglamam Azgza with about 9.4%, Tigsalin with 9.3%, and Lakbab with about 8.5%.

Cattle breeding is less in mountainous areas, where goats and then sheep are more compatible with the nature of the mountains, especially goats, due to their weight, mobility and ability to climb; these abilities allow them to benefit from mountain plants, in the slopes and rocky cliffs of trees and grasses.

4.The dominance of small livestock breeders in the mountainous areas of the Beni Mellal Khenifra region

Chart No. 2: Varieties of cattle breeders in the mountains in the region of Beni Mellal Khenifra

Source: Fieldwork 2020

It is clear from the data in the statement that there is a clear dominance of small livestock breeders, and this situation poses multiple challenges, including the difficulty of the framing process. Consequently, the sector faces several constraints that limit its development and profitability. Livestock farming is severely affected by the high prices of fodder, especially in light of the exacerbation of climate change.

It should be noted that the mountainous regions of the Beni Mellal Khenifra region do not benefit from the Green Morocco Plan in this area of livestock breeding, except in some respects related to supporting associations that work to supervise small livestock breeders within the framework of the proximity policy, and organizing awareness days to stimulate the adoption of modern technologies in this field. However, the potential of livestock breeders in these mountainous areas remains weak and substandard.

In the mountains of Beni Mellal Khenifra, there are difficulties in terms of introducing modern means, in light of the presence of a number of small livestock breeders and the weakness and limited capabilities of them. Traditional means control the mountain peasant economy, which exacerbates fragility.

There are a few cases in which the number of cattle reaches 200, especially in Aglamam Azgza and Boutafarda, in which sheep are largely dominated and then goats; these cattle are linked to the proceeds of external migration, as the capital came through the work of the children of families, especially in France and Spain, or through internal migration, especially to the city of Casablanca.

In order for this sector to be able to achieve territorial development in mountainous areas, attention must be paid to small and medium livestock breeders, and to ensure that they are grouped into cooperatives, as an option through which livestock production and its derivatives can be developed, as cooperatives need more effort to develop them further in this area.

5.Raising cattle in the mountains in the Beni Mellal Khenifra region and sources of feed materials

Chart No. 3: Sources of fodder materials in the mountains in the Beni Mellal Khenifra region

Source: Fieldwork 2020

The mountain population wants to raise livestock, but in light of the change in climate change and the shortage of agricultural products, livestock has become expensive and needs important fodder materials throughout the year (sheep and cattle).

The territorial communities in the mountains differ in terms of the sources of fodder materials, as the forest is a source of fodder for the nearby population, on which they rely heavily to provide these fodder materials, especially the community of Boutafrada in the province of Beni Mellal, the community of Aglamam Azgza in the province of Khenifra, and Ait M’hamed in the province of Azilal. The inhabitants of these communities are very interested in raising sheep and goats; a group of heads of households expressed that in periods of snow and rain, they cut down the forest, especially green oak, and use it as fodder for livestock.

The issue of relying on the forest as the first source for an important segment of mountain families is a great pressure, which makes the process of fragility of forest resources continue, in the absence of other alternative sources for mountain families, and in the face of the economic and social fragility they are experiencing.

6.Livestock breeding and the problem of pastures in the mountains in the Beni Mellal Khenifra region

Chart No. 4: Cattle breeding and natural pastures in the mountains in the Beni Mellal Khenifra region

Source: Fieldwork 2020

Recent years have witnessed a significant increase in the prices of fodder materials, which negatively affected the productivity of most livestock breeders, especially in light of the weak capabilities, in addition to the difficulty of finding pastoralists due to low yields and high internal migration in the mountains.

The lack of pasture is one of the main reasons for abandoning livestock farming, as it becomes unprofitable as the purchase of fodder materials increases in price. Without official intervention, in order to subsidize the prices of fodder, especially in periods of drought, not to mention the hardships of raising livestock.

In the snow, the mountainous population takes refuge in the neighboring areas, where families in the commune of Boutafrada and Tizi Nisli take refuge in some areas of Khenifra, such as Aglmous and Lahri, and some families in wawla and Ait M’hamed take refuge in Chiadma, Brouge, Bouarfa and other areas in the desert. While the mountainous inhabitants resort to nearby areas within the same community, since the mountainous areas do not cover the entire territorial communities, but there are plateau areas characterized by flatness.

7.Weak profitability of livestock breeding activity according to mountain families in the Beni Mellal Khenifra region

Chart No. 5: The opinion of mountain families in the Beni Mellal Khenifra region on the profitability of livestock breeding

Source: Fieldwork 2020

Livestock farming in this context is considered to be low profit in mountainous areas, where it is a struggle for its owners, due to the increasing expenses and expenses, compared to the economic feasibility they expect. Feed prices have risen dramatically, affecting the ability of mountain families to raise and trade livestock, as this contributes to reducing the potential profit margin.

Due to the variability characteristic of the climate, livestock farming in the mountains has been affected by the drought wave and its repercussions, in light of the high prices of fodder, and most breeders do not have the simplest requirements to develop animal production processes.

Due to the limited capabilities of mountain families, they are waiting for the state’s intervention in all sectors, because the personal capabilities of these families do not enable the crystallization of ambitious personal projects, except for some immigrant investors or foreign investors from the region, who have important capital, which allows them to develop the level of livestock breeding and increase the number of its heads.

The profitability of livestock farming activity depends on a combination of factors, including the abundance of pastures, the importance of rainfall, and the availability of sufficient fodder for livestock. In light of the drought and the scarcity and cost of fodder, livestock farming is unwelcome, as these families are gradually abandoning this economic activity, and engaging in other professions and trades, especially double transport, and internal migration during the period from December to April.

8.The livestock breeding activity does not meet the needs of mountain families in the Beni Mellal Khenifra region

Chart No. 6: Raising livestock and meeting the needs of mountain families in the Beni Mellal Khenifra region

Source: Fieldwork 2020

Economic activity is used to improve the standard of living of mountain families, achieving positive repercussions by meeting family needs and requirements. The majority of mountain families do not meet their needs depending on the activity of raising livestock, and this is what we find in all the mountain communities studied with different percentages, where the highest percentage is estimated in the community of Ait M’hamed at about 81.6%, and the lowest percentage in ait ishak is about 66.8%.

Especially sheep, which are expensive and need pasture during periods of snow, as the population resorts to distant pastures, whether inside or outside the region.

A percentage of mountain families depend on cattle breeding as a main economic activity and another as a secondary activity, and their family needs are fully met depending on this activity, about 34.1% in Ait Ishak, about 33.2% in Tigsalin, and 32.7% in Aglamam Azgza.

Given the views of the majority of the mountain population, cattle farming in this situation cannot be considered a fundamental pillar in creating territorial development in the mountains, which makes the challenge for the various territorial actors to promote this sector and provide development alternatives for the various mountain families that suffer from marginalization and poverty. Supporting livestock breeders in these mountain communities, in order to develop their activity and increase its profitability.

Focusing on cattle farming in the mountains in the Beni Mellal Khenifra region is an important activity for rural families, but the presence of a set of constraints limits its economic effectiveness. The issue of providing other economic alternatives is a development bet and a strategic choice to achieve the desired territorial development in the mountains.

9. The absence of a development approach stemming from the specificities of the mountains in the Beni Mellal Khenifra region

Morocco, through the development models it presented, has not yet reached the development policy for mountainous regions, and this fact has negative effects on the mountains in the Beni Mellal Khenifra region, which has suffered greatly from weak development conditions. These areas have peculiarities that call for a reconsideration of development preparation methods and interventions. In the face of this situation, the question always remains whether the adoption of an effective policy for planning and territorial management in mountainous areas has been delayed.

In this regard, we do not deny the completion of a series of interventions in the mountains of the Beni Mellal Khenifra region, but these interventions were within the framework of general national policies that do not evoke local specificities, but were carried out with technical and sectoral approaches, which made the integrated bioministerial work long overdue. The territorial and integrated approaches that Morocco is trying to implement need radical transformations and developments in the prevailing systems[1].

The development approach to mountain areas requires identifying areas of intervention, searching for an incentive and appropriate system for investment, as well as adopting rules that contribute to lifting constraints and valuing the qualifications of mountain regions to achieve their attractiveness[2].

The local territory has become the cornerstone of local governance, as all economic and social development must be supported by local territorial dynamics, aimed at managing human resources, managing partnership, opening up to the labor market and creating relations of trust[3].

The local sphere represents the most renewed reference in the development of the governance system itself, in relation to local societal specificities in light of the principle of territorial approach. This imposes itself through the fact that the territory constitutes the level at which we can assess or evaluate economic and social development, in relation to the environment and other communities, based on partnership and responsibility at the local level, and through what has been done on the ground[4].

However, since independence and until the end of the nineties of the last century, the State, within the framework of its management of the field, relied on central planning and management, which created development problems in mountainous areas. Thus, he showed his limitations in facing all the development problems raised, in terms of assessing development priorities, how to dare and activate them, and in adapting development projects and programs to the reality of mountainous areas at the environmental, economic, social and cultural levels, in order to meet the needs and expectations of the local population.

Thus, the central management has made the development of the mountainous regions of the Beni Mellal Khenifra region carried out within the framework of a sectoral approach in all fields. This has focused attention mainly on national objectives, through the mobilization and valorization of local mountain resources, especially water and forest resources, in the service of national and regional development.

Around the year 2000, a policy of territorial development was adopted, after the sectoral approach failed to achieve the desired development.  The purpose of this policy was to correct the imbalances that had afflicted for decades not only the mountains, but the entire Moroccan territory, in the fields of social justice and economic efficiency. We find that this policy called for the development of a plan for the preparation and development of mountain areas, where three guidelines were identified[5]:

• Recognize that mountain development lies in the classification of mountains as a general national heritage, which must be maintained and developed;
• The strong commitment of the public authorities to the development and preparation of mountain areas, and the activation of solidarity mechanisms nationally and regionally;
• Reconciling economic efficiency with the need to preserve the ecological balances of the mountain environments of the Beni Mellal Khenifra region, by integrating the social, cultural and environmental dimensions into the development strategy.

Despite the adoption of the territorial preparation policy, a development strategy aimed at making mountainous areas equal to plain and coastal areas, as well as areas with a high level of territorial development, has not been formulated. This is due to the ineffectiveness of the development programs followed, which were crystallized within the framework of a central view, as these programs were not based on development goals stemming from local territorial components and specificities. Mountainous areas have been integrated into strategies for the advancement of the rural world, despite the different particularities. Moreover, the most prominent programs that have been developed for the development of rural areas and mountainous areas have not been accompanied by a legislative framework that regulates the modalities of their implementation and defines the levels and responsibilities of territorial actors.

Thus, the mountains in the Beni Mellal Khenifra region suffered from limited development approaches[6]. In light of globalization and its challenges, and the increasing pressures that necessitate openness to the outside, mountains have been forced to be more competitive and qualified to face and confront all challenges, through the approach of effective territorial development policies, based on working to mobilize their local specificities and components[7]. The effectiveness of any project in the preparation and development of mountain areas depends on the extent to which the specificities of the region are respected and the extent to which the mountain dimension is integrated into development policies.

The issue of tracking and evaluating development strategies and programs and the projects completed in the mountainous areas of the Beni Mellal Khenifra region has not been effective in identifying the various stumbles and negatives of these projects, both in terms of the preparation phase and the download phase, in close connection with their economic and social effects on the local population.

The issue of randomness and improvisation, which characterizes many projects, has not served the issue of territorial development in the mountainous areas of the Beni Mellal Khenifra region, nor can it limit the bleeding of mountain migration to other regions.

Despite the passage of more than 60 years since Morocco’s independence, a period of time capable of creating a qualitative leap at the level of territorial development in mountainous regions, by benefiting from the accumulated international and regional development experiences and models. No development model has been reached, whether through the adoption of decentralization or the adoption of a regional policy, in light of collective, regional or regional fragmentations, which have deepened and exacerbated imbalances and increased the number of migrants from mountain villages to cities or from mountain cities to other cities, inside or outside the region.

The weakness of the territorial development in the mountains of the Beni Mellal Khenifra region is not only due to the magnitude of natural constraints, but also to the approaches adopted in the development of the mountainous soil, in the absence of a deep understanding of the historical, cultural, natural and human specificities of these geographical areas. It was treated as a homogeneous mass with uniform and similar social and spatial specificities, deepening the crisis in the mountains. All the decisions taken targeting these areas do not have a clear territorial reference.

Conclusion

The creation of territorial resources is a pivotal and crucial building block in the development of perceptions and mechanisms of mountain territorial development, and it is not possible to recognize the existence of an effective development vision in light of the weakness of the mountain economy, and the weakness of its developmental repercussions on families. Management, territorial planning and the approaches adopted are the main factors responsible for this situation, as a result of the shortcomings and weaknesses it faced.

In this regard, it is necessary to value all available territorial resources, support farmers and provide all material and moral conditions to ensure their development and integration into the process of territorial development in a correct, sound and effective manner.

Economic development cannot be achieved without adopting a territorial vision of the mountain, based on local specificities. The absence of a policy on mountains in the economic field also raises questions about the nature and dimensions of development interventions at the social level, and their repercussions on the development situation of mountain families in the Beni Mellal Khenifra region.

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• External interests and administrative institutions :

-Regional Investment Center in Beni Mellal Khenifra Region., 2016.

-Um Al Rabie Basin Agency in Beni Mellal.

[1] . Boujrof Said., 2007, Moroccan Mountains: What Preparation?, PhD thesis in geography of preparation, Faculty of Arts and Humanities, Marrakech, Cadi Ayyad University, pp. 484-485.

[2] . Al-Katmour Hassan & Mazour Layla, 2012, Rural Development in Mountainous Areas between Qualifications and Constraints, Mentioned in Rural Development in Mountainous Areas Needs and Expectations, coordinated by Muhammad Al-Baqsi and Muhammad Al-Zerhouni, Proceedings of the Second Forum for Development and Culture of Igzaran, first edition, p. 25

[3] . Yaakoubi Mohamed, 2005, Reflections on Local Democracy in Morocco, Arts of Printing and Advertising, Fez, first edition, p. 181.

[4] . El Houcine Rachid, 2006, The Role of Local Culture in Development, Moroccan Journal of Local Administration and Development, Double Issue 66-67, pp. 139.

[5] . Al-Hiloush Mohamed., 2012, Rural Development in the Territorial Preparation Policy in Morocco, Rural Development in Mountainous Areas between Qualifications and Constraints, Mentioned in Rural Development in Mountainous Regions Needs and Expectations, Coordination of Muhammad Al-Baqsi and Muhammad Al-Zerhouni, Proceedings of the Second Forum for Development and Culture of Igzaran, First Edition, p. 55.

[6] . Directorate of Territorial Preparation, synthetic summary of the work of the local workshops of the Tadla Azilal region, cited in: Synthetic Abstracts of Regional Forums, p. 330.

[7] . Jenan Lahcen., 2010, The Rural World in Geographical Research, Journal of Geographical Notebooks, No. 7, Faculty of Arts, Dhahr Al-Mahraz, Fez, p. 22.