From 3 to 9 March 2024, experts from the Forest and Landscape Restoration Mechanism (FLRM) of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) conducted a field visit to restoration sites in the Maâmora forest and Ifrane region of Morocco. The visits were organized in the context of the Mediterranean regional component of the project “The Paris Agreement in Action: Upscaling Forest and Landscape Restoration to Achieve Nationally Determined Contributions,” funded by the International Climate Initiative (IKI) and co-funded by the Korean Forest Service (KFS). 

This project aims to strengthen regional and national dynamics in three regions, including the Mediterranean basin, with high potential for forest restoration.  

This visit was part of a programme of exchange visits of restoration experts between Italy and Morocco, which started in 2023. The 2024 edition is organized in collaboration with the Secretariat of the Mediterranean Model Forest Network, which in Morocco is represented by the Ifrane Model Forest and the Arebica Model Forest Initiative. This Moroccan field trip provided an opportunity for Italian restoration and forestry experts to visit sites where activities are implemented on the ground.  

The first site visit was to the Maâmora cork oak (Quercus suber L.) forest, which is known to be a unique and crucial forest ecosystem in the Mediterranean region. This forest has been facing uncontrolled overgrazing and prolonged drought due to climate change, causing degradation and reduced natural regeneration. The participants were able to evaluate ongoing natural regeneration, enrichment planting and participatory approaches carried out in degraded forest areas.  

The other visit was to the Ifrane Model Forest restoration site, which consists of 25 hectares (ha) of land in the degraded cedar forest ecosystem. Managed by the Ifrane Model Forest, the plantation in this area has been thriving since its initiation in 2023, allowing the survival of cedar (Cedrusatlantica L.) seedlings. Additional 20 ha of degraded slope are under restoration by the Arebica Model Forest Association, which built a fence to avoid overgrazing, with the participation of local associations, and planted seedlings of cedar, juniper (Juniperus oxycedra L. and J. thurifera L.) and Quercus ilex L. to support the recovery of degraded forest area. The field trip also allowed experts to visit a cedar forest area where overgrazing has been prohibited for 20 years, and natural regeneration is increasing. This area is a key source of seedlings for reforestation in the Ifrane National Park. 

This initiative of exchange visits between Mediterranean countries allows forest and environmental experts to share their field experiences on forest restoration. The visits helped the exchange of good practices and provided experts with the opportunity to share their experiences, observe, comment and interact directly with other members of the Mediterranean forestry community in the field. In May, Moroccan restoration experts will visit the Model Forest Montagne Fiorentine to complete the exchange experience.

Valentina Garavaglia and Sangick Lee (FAO)