Morocco
Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...
, and is the capital of Taounate Province. The town had 37,616 inhabitants as of the
2014 Moroccan census
The 2014 Moroccan census was held in Morocco between 1 September and 20 September 2014. The census was conducted by the High Planning Commission.
Rif Mountains
The Rif (, ), also called Rif Mountains, is a geographic region in northern Morocco. It is bordered on the north by the Mediterranean Sea and Spain and on the west by the Atlantic Ocean, and is the homeland of the Rifians and the Jebala people. ...
, and the river Oued Sra and gorges are nearby. The town is situated on a plateau that overlooks the valley of the Oued Sra, as well as the Gargara gorges.
Infrastructure
In 2016, it was announced that a highway development plan, estimated to be completed by 2035, will benefit the Taounate area, the highway being called the "Fès-Taounate Axis".
West of Taounate is the Al Wahda Dam on the Ouergha River, which is the largest dam in Morocco and the second largest in Africa.
Economy
Taounate's economy is led by the agriculture sector, specifically fig farming. In addition to figs, cherries, pears, apples, and olives are also grown. Cattle, cereal production, and timber are important industries.
Cannabis
''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae that is widely accepted as being indigenous to and originating from the continent of Asia. However, the number of species is disputed, with as many as three species be ...
is also cultivated in the area.
Culture
The area surrounding Taounate is generally mountainous, and cereals (mostly wheat) and cattle are intensively raised at lower elevations. Fruits (including figs, olives, cherries, apples, and pears) are grown in the well-watered mountain valleys. Higher elevations are covered with commercially exploited cedars and cork oaks. The area is inhabited mostly by Imazighen (
Berbers
Berbers, or the Berber peoples, also known as Amazigh or Imazighen, are a diverse grouping of distinct ethnic groups indigenous to North Africa who predate the arrival of Arab migrations to the Maghreb, Arabs in the Maghreb. Their main connec ...
); the more isolated groups speak only Riff, an Amazigh dialect, and the less isolated groups are generally bilingual, speaking both Riff and Arabic.
Taounate is home to an annual Festival of Figs, organized by the Regional Directorate of Agriculture of Fez-Meknes. The festival includes many varieties of figs. Friday is market day in Taounate.
Union Sportive de Taounate represents Taounate in
association football
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...
.
Notable people
* Mustapha Bakkoury (born 1964), businessman, engineer and politician
* Bouchta El Hayani, painter
* Rachid Azzouzi, Former Moroccan footballer and sporting manager
* Nasser Bourita, (born 27 1969), Moroccan diplomat serving as the Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates 2017
Gallery
File:ASC Leiden - van Achterberg Collection - 2 - 004 - Un marché avec des cruches faites de pneus de voiture avec leur fabricant. Des ânes - Taounate, Maroc - mai 1997.tiff, A market with men and women. Waterjars made from old tyres and their maker. Donkeys, 1997
File:ASC Leiden - van Achterberg Collection - 2 - 005 - Un marché avec des cruches faites des pneus de voiture avec leur fabricant. Des ânes - Taounate, Maroc - mai 1997.tif, A market with waterjars, 1997
File:ASC Leiden - van Achterberg Collection - 2 - 001 - Une maison fermière blanche vue du haut avec à coté une meule blanchi - Taounate, Maroc - mai 1997.tiff, A white farm seen from above with a typical white washed triangular haystack, 1997.
File:12670691 476519005869504 4305504fghhhhtc jnznsx n.jpg, The "16 November" football stadium, pictured in 2016