A new seaport was recently opened by Morocco’s Prime Minister Abdul-Rahman Al-Yusufi, in the southwestern city of Dakhela, reported Al-Watan. The construction of the new seaport was carried out by a Romanian company at the cost of $22 million.
The port’s total construction costs amounted to 475 million Moroccan dirhams ($42 million). The European Union contributed a portion of the funds, within the framework of the Euro-Mediterranean Program. The Moroccan Port Authority financed the rest, which took up most of its investments budget for the fiscal year 2000/2001.
One of the port’s functions will be fishing, with an estimated catch of some 100,000 tons during the first year, and rising to 200,000 tons for the following year. An industrial estate, which will specialize in fish breeding, freezing, packaging and re-exporting, has been constructed alongside the new port.
In 2000, port traffic grew by five percent compared to the previous year, amounting to 55.5 million tons. An estimated 60.4 million tons of cargo are expected to past through Morocco’s various ports in 2001. — (Mena Report)
© 2001 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
