The commune of Sidi Bouhria in Berkane province hosted the official launch ceremony Monday, October 26, for a training program aimed at combating functional illiteracy among farmers and their families in the Oriental region. The program will benefit 4,900 people by 2028.
The launch ceremony was attended by Mohamed Lafdili, acting regional director of agriculture for the Oriental region, sector officials, representatives of the National Agency for the Fight Against Illiteracy, local authorities and the Oriental Chamber of Agriculture, as well as representatives of agricultural professional organizations and civil society groups.
The 2026-2028 training program is part of the project to support integrated rural development in the mountain areas of the Oriental region, funded through a partnership between the Moroccan government and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
Covering 19 communes in Oujda-Angad prefecture and the provinces of Berkane, Guercif and Driouch, the initiative aims to strengthen farmers’ and their families’ basic skills in reading, writing and arithmetic, while developing their agricultural knowledge to facilitate access to information and income-generating activities.
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Lafdili told MAP that the program is being implemented in partnership with specialized civil society associations and aims to help beneficiaries master the management of their farms and projects.
He added that this component complements the project’s broader efforts to improve living conditions in rural areas through improved access to isolated communities, the planting of trees resistant to climate change, and the provision of agricultural equipment to young people and women.
In the area covered by the Oujda Provincial Directorate of Agriculture, 400 people will benefit from local basic and functional literacy training sessions. For 2026, two partnership agreements have been signed to organize sessions for 200 beneficiaries through the creation of 10 training groups running for 18 months across five communes: Sidi Bouhria, Tafoughalt, Rislane, Ain Sfa and Labsara.
Jamal Ramdani, president of the Tafoughalt Association for Solidarity and Development, said the initiative aims to help rural women acquire reading and writing skills linked to their professional activities, facilitating their integration into the economic and social fabric. He said the association is targeting 120 beneficiaries in the communes of Sidi Bouhria, Tafoughalt and Rislane.
Sanae Hajjaji, a trainer with the same association, said the training sessions aim to raise awareness of the importance of sustainable development and agricultural efficiency. She praised the strong participation and commitment of beneficiaries, as well as their desire to contribute to local development efforts.
One of the beneficiaries said the initiative provides an opportunity to learn the alphabet and overcome the barrier of age. She called on women to enroll in literacy classes to develop their skills and expressed hope that such initiatives would be expanded to include the integration of young people who have dropped out of school into the agricultural sector.
The project to support integrated rural development in the mountain areas of the Oriental region aims to sustainably improve living conditions for rural populations and reduce their vulnerability to climate change by strengthening capacities, increasing household incomes through diversified income sources, and improving the value and marketing of local products.
