The Minister of Equipment, Transport, Logistics, and Water, Abdelkader Amara, announced that Morocco allocates an annual budget of MAD 3 billion ($336.34 million) for the maintenance of the national roads network. The figure represents 46% of the total budget allocated for roads in general.
Speaking earlier today during a hearing session at the parliament, Amara stressed that not maintaining the country’s road infrastructure would be a big loss for the national purse given the amount reserved for road maintenance.
The minister went on to reveal that the regular maintenance of the national road network cost the Moroccan government a total of MAD 250 million ($28 million). Citing Morocco’s increasing efforts to invest in road construction projects, Amara also highlighted his ministry’s eagerness to consolidate its achievements in terms of road maintenance.
“The extension, construction, and rehabilitation works of the road network to meet the growing needs of road traffic cost nearly 54% of the budget the ministry allocates annually to roads,” he said.
“There are certain problems which hamper the work of the ministry at this level, in particular those related to the novelties obliging the ministry to make changes in programming and financing, like the Tiznit-Dakhla expressway.”
Meanwhile, Amara emphasized the efforts of both his ministry and local authorities to improve the quality of communal and regional roads.
The total length of the communal road should reach 33,000 km, he explained. He added that, in coordination with the ministry and various stakeholders, local authorities have made considerable efforts to “improve the frequency and the quality of the maintenance of rural roads, with a view to preserving road assets in the rural world.” said the minister.
Amara concluded that achieving the required balance between maintenance of the road network, the preservation of road assets, and the construction of new roads is a challenge for his ministry.