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 ...
. It covers an area of 88,836 km2 and had a population of 1,635,008 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.Errachidia.
Geography
Drâa-Tafilalet is situated in the
Atlas Mountains
The Atlas Mountains are a mountain range in the Maghreb in North Africa. They separate the Sahara Desert from the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean; the name "Atlantic" is derived from the mountain range, which stretches around through M ...
of Morocco. Its main watersheds are that of the Draa River in the west and the Ziz River, which irrigates the Tafilalt oasis, in the east. Drâa-Tafilalet borders five other Moroccan regions:
Souss-Massa
Souss-Massa () is one of the twelve regions of Morocco, regions of Morocco. It covers an area of 51,642 km² and had a population of 2,676,847 as of the 2014 Moroccan census. The capital of the region is Agadir.
Geography
Souss-Massa bord ...
Béni Mellal-Khénifra
Béni Mellal-Khénifra () is one of the twelve regions of Morocco, covering an area of 28,374 km2, and recorded a population of 2,520,776 in the 2014 Moroccan census. The capital of the region is Beni Mellal.
Geography
Béni Mellal-Khéni ...
Oriental
The Orient is a term referring to the East in relation to Europe, traditionally comprising anything belonging to the Eastern world. It is the antonym of the term ''Occident'', which refers to the Western world.
In English, it is largely a meto ...
to the northeast. It also borders two of
Algeria
Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...
's
provinces
A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...
,
Tindouf
Tindouf () is the main town, and a Communes of Algeria, commune in Tindouf Province, Algeria, close to the Algeria–Mauritania border, Mauritanian, Algeria–Western Sahara border, Western Saharan and Algeria–Morocco border, Moroccan borders. Th ...
Drâa-Tafilalet was formed in September 2015 by integrating the provinces of Errachidia and Midelt in Meknès-Tafilalet region with three provinces of the Souss-Massa-Drâa region.
Government
Lahbib Choubani of the Justice and Development Party was elected as the regional council's first president on 14 September 2015. Mohamed Fanid was appointed governor (''wali'') of the region on 13 October 2015. He was succeeded by Mohamed Benribag in 2017.
Tinghir Province
Tinghir Province () is a Provinces of Morocco, province of Morocco in the Drâa-Tafilalet Region. The province had a population of 322,412 people in 2014.Zagora Province
Economy
Agriculture and
pastoralism
Pastoralism is a form of animal husbandry where domesticated animals (known as "livestock") are released onto large vegetated outdoor lands (pastures) for grazing, historically by nomadic people who moved around with their herds. The anim ...
have traditionally been major economic activities in the region, but they have been adversely impacted in recent years by increasing
desertification
Desertification is a type of gradual land degradation of Soil fertility, fertile land into arid desert due to a combination of natural processes and human activities.
The immediate cause of desertification is the loss of most vegetation. This i ...
. There is a filmmaking industry concentrated in the
Ouarzazate
Ouarzazate (; , ), nicknamed ''the door of the desert'', is a city and capital of Ouarzazate Province in the region of Drâa-Tafilalet, south-central Morocco.
Ouarzazate is a primary tourist destination in Morocco during the holidays, as well as ...
World Heritage Site
World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
Aït Benhaddou
Aït Benhaddou () is a historic ksar, ''ighrem'' or ''ksar'' (fortified village) along the former Caravan (travellers), caravan route between the Sahara and Marrakesh in Morocco. It is considered a great example of Moroccan architecture, Moroccan ...
, are popular tourist attractions. Traditional arts and crafts such as the pottery of Tamegroute and the rugs of Taznakht are also significant to the local economy.
Infrastructure
The largest towns in the region, Errachidia and Ouarzazate, are linked together by National Route 10. The Draa valley is served by National Route 9 which also links Ouarzazate with
Marrakesh
Marrakesh or Marrakech (; , ) is the fourth-largest city in Morocco. It is one of the four imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrakesh–Safi Regions of Morocco, region. The city lies west of the foothills of the Atlas Mounta ...
to the northwest. National Route 13 runs along the Ziz valley and links Errachidia with
Meknes
Meknes (, ) is one of the four Imperial cities of Morocco, located in northern central Morocco and the sixth largest city by population in the kingdom. Founded in the 11th century by the Almoravid dynasty, Almoravids as a military settlement, Mekne ...
airport
An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial Aviation, air transport. They usually consist of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surf ...
in the region; the airports at Errachidia and Zagora also have commercial service.