Document of The World Bank FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY Report No: 31531 IMPLEMENTATION COMPLETION REPORT (SCL-42890 SCL-42891) ON A LOAN IN THE AMOUNT OF US$ 10.00 MILLION AND FF 59.00 MILLION TO THE MOROCCO FOR A WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT PROJECT MAY 11, 2005 Water, Environment, Social and Rural Development Department Middle East and North Africa Region This document has a restricted distribution and may be used by recipients only in the performance of their official duties. Its contents may not otherwise be disclosed without World Bank authorization. CURRENCY EQUIVALENTS (Exchange Rate Effective January 4, 2005) Currency Unit = Moroccan Dirham (DH) DH 1.00 = US$ 0.12 US$ 1.00 = DH 8.4 FISCAL YEAR January 1 December 31 ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS AGR Administration du Génie Rural / Department of Rural Works CCT Comité de Coordination Technique / Technical Coordination Com DELM Direction de l'épidémiologie et de lutte contre les maladies Department of Epidemiology and Diseases Control DGH Direction Générale de l'Hydraulique / Directorate General of Hydraulics DMN Direction de la Météorologie Nationale / Department of National Meteorology ERR Economic Rate of Return FAO Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations GOM Government of Morocco MATEE Ministère de l'Aménagement du Territoire, de l'Eau et de l'Environnement Ministry of Territorial Activities, Water and Environment M&E Monitoring and Evaluation MoA Ministry of Agriculture MoF Ministry of Finance and Privatization MoI Ministry of Interior MoIC Ministry of Industry and Commerce MoPHMinistry of Public Health MoPW Ministry of Public Works MTR Mid-Term Review ONE Office National de l'Electricité / National Electricity Office ONEP Office National de l'Eau Potable / National Potable Water Office ORMVA Office Régional de Mise en Valeur Agricole Regional Agricultural Development Authority RBA River Basin Agency SAR Staff Appraisal Report SEEau Secrétariat d'État pour l'Eau / State Secretariat for Water SEEN Services des Expérimentations, Essaies et de la Normalisation / Experimentation, Trials and Standards Unit UCP Unité de Coordination du Projet / Project Coordination Unit WRMP Water Resources Management Project Vice President: Christiaan J. Poortman Country Director: Theodore O. Ahlers Sector Manager: Vijay Jagannathan Task Team Leader/Task Manager: Adel Bichara MOROCCO WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT PROJECT CONTENTS Page No. 1. Project Data 1 2. Principal Performance Ratings 1 3. Assessment of Development Objective and Design, and of Quality at Entry 2 4. Achievement of Objective and Outputs 4 5. Major Factors Affecting Implementation and Outcome 11 6. Sustainability 12 7. Bank and Borrower Performance 13 8. Lessons Learned 14 9. Partner Comments 15 10. Additional Information 15 Annex 1. Key Performance Indicators/Log Frame Matrix 16 Annex 2. Project Costs and Financing 17 Annex 3. Economic Costs and Benefits 19 Annex 4. Bank Inputs 23 Annex 5. Ratings for Achievement of Objectives/Outputs of Components 26 Annex 6. Ratings of Bank and Borrower Performance 27 Annex 7. List of Supporting Documents 28 Annex 8. Borrower's Evaluation Report 31 Project ID: P005521 Project Name: MA-WATER RESOURCES MGMT. Team Leader: Adel F. Bichara TL Unit: MNSRE ICR Type: Core ICR Report Date: May 11, 2005 1. Project Data Name: MA-WATER RESOURCES MGMT. L/C/TF Number: SCL-42890; SCL-42891 Country/Department: MOROCCO Region: Middle East and North Africa Region Sector/subsector: Water supply (64%); Central government administration (16%); Agricultural extension and research (12%); Sub-national government administration (4%); Flood protection (4%) Theme: Rural services and infrastructure (P); Environmental policies and institutions (P); Pollution management and environmental health (P); Water resource management (P); Other human development (S) KEY DATES Original Revised/Actual PCD: 09/14/1994 Effective: 01/05/1999 Appraisal: 04/04/1996 MTR: 01/31/2001 05/04/2001 Approval: 02/26/1998 Closing: 06/30/2002 12/31/2004 Borrower/Implementing Agency: GOVT OF MOROCCO/MINISTRIES OF PUBLIC WORKS & AGRICULTURE Other Partners: STAFF Current At Appraisal Vice President: Christiaan J. Poortman Kemal Dervis Country Director: Theodore O. Ahlers Christian Delvoie Sector Manager: Vijay Jagannathan Mark D. Wilson Team Leader at ICR: Adel F. Bichara Adel F. Bichara ICR Primary Author: Adel F. Bichara; J-M. Bisson (FAO/CP) 2. Principal Performance Ratings (HS=Highly Satisfactory, S=Satisfactory, U=Unsatisfactory, HL=Highly Likely, L=Likely, UN=Unlikely, HUN=Highly Unlikely, HU=Highly Unsatisfactory, H=High, SU=Substantial, M=Modest, N=Negligible) Outcome: S Sustainability: L Institutional Development Impact: M Bank Performance: S Borrower Performance: S QAG (if available) ICR Quality at Entry: S Project at Risk at Any Time: 3. Assessment of Development Objective and Design, and of Quality at Entry 3.1 Original Objective: The main objective of the Water Resources Management Project (WRMP) was "to assist the Government in promoting a comprehensive water management system which is economically efficient, equitable and environmentally sustainable". Specifically, the project aimed at: (a) supporting the establishment of an institutional framework for integrated water resources management and the creation of a River Basin Agency in the Oum-er-R'bia basin; (b) improving the Government's capacity for water resources planning and management; (c) improving water use efficiency; (d) increasing the effectiveness of existing hydraulic infrastructure; and (e) introducing water pollution control measures. Despite noticeable achievements in the water sector, at the beginning of the 1990's Morocco was facing some serious challenges, mainly: (a) decline in the available water resources and the degradation of water quality; (b) low levels of potable water provision for rural populations; (c) low irrigation efficiency; (d) inadequate maintenance of existing infrastructure; and (e) weak institutional capacity. During the 90's extensive technical and analytical work was carried out by the Government of Morocco (GOM) and the Bank. The most important outputs produced have been the Water Sector Review (1995) and the Water Law (1995). The Government subsequently asked the Bank to assist in implementing the recommendations of the above work and as a result, the WRMP was formulated as the first project aimed at providing a model for demonstrating the beneficial effects of integrated water resources management in river basins. The project's objectives were clear and focused on priorities for improving water resources management in Morocco's Oum-er-R'bia basin. These objectives were consistent with the Bank's Country Assistance Strategy (CAS) at the time and MENA's Water Strategy, as well as with the recommendations of the Water Sector Review. However, in retrospect, the main objective appears now to be somewhat overly ambitious given the final limited scale of the project's components and costs (US$25.6 million over four years). This is mainly due to the fact that at preparation the project's total costs were very much higher and were later reduced (several components were dropped) to the present appraisal estimate of US$25 million (see Section 3.5) without scaling down the initial ambitious objective. Despite that, all the project's physical components were straightforward and within the technical and administrative capability of the all the implementing agencies involved. 3.2 Revised Objective: The original project objectives were maintained throughout the life of the project. 3.3 Original Components: The project, as designed in the SAR, was composed of the following three main components: A. Policy Reforms and Institutional Development (US$3.3 million). This component includes: (a) Development of a National Water Master Plan defining the short, medium and long-term investments at the national and river basin level over the period 2000-2020. (b) Development of a water pricing study for bulk water, including the impact of various scenarios on water use efficiency and the financial viability of water users such as the National Potable Water Office ( ONEP) and the National Electricity Office (ONE). - 2 - (c) Establishment of the Oum-er-R'bia River Basin Agency (RBA) mainly through the provision of legal and technical assistance as well as the procurement of equipment. B. Capacity-Building (US$16.1 million). This component is aimed at strengthening the Government's capabilities in four critical areas: (b) Water resources planning by strengthening the ex-Directorate General of Hydraulics (DGH) of the ex-Ministry of Public Works (MoPW) for planning as well as for the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) of water resources development, allocation and quality control by the provision of technical assistance and training, the preparation of a national plan for flood control, and the preparation of a national plan to control water pollution. (b) Water resources allocation through the installation of a comprehensive real time water management system in the Oum-er-R'bia basin, including automatic flow metering and computerized decision support systems, and the installation of some 12 new meteorological stations. (c) Water conservation in irrigation by carrying out a priority program of applied research for water conservation in irrigation in the three ORMVAs (Office Régional de Mise en Valeur Agricole) of Doukkala, Tadla and Souss Massa and the SEEN (Experimentation, Trials and Standards Unit) of the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) , focused on improved irrigation techniques and salinity/nitrates control measures. (d) Control of waterborne diseases through support of the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) program for controlling waterborne diseases in the Oum-er-Rbia basin. C. Investments in Water Mobilization (US$6.2 million). This component includes investments selected on the basis of their contribution to enhancing water resources management: (a) Rehabilitation of the upstream face of the Nakhla dam to stop the leakages and corresponding water losses. (b) Artificial recharge of the Souss aquifer and study of the Triffa Plain aquifer to mobilize additional groundwater, mainly for irrigation. (c) Preparation of a national water quality improvement plan to improve water quality in the Oum-er-R'bia river. These components were directly relevant to the project's objectives and the civil works to be carried out ((a) and (b) of C) were indeed appropriate priorities for improving water resources mobilization in the Oum-er-R'bia basin. 3.4 Revised Components: To better follow up on the various project components/sub-components and to better distinguish between the respective implementing agencies tasks (MoPW - including the DMN, MoA, and MoPH), the implementing agencies and the Bank informally reorganized the project's main components (from three at appraisal, they were increased to five during the supervision mission of April 2000 all that without dropping any project's sub-component) as follows: (a) water resources planning; (b) establishment of an RBA; (c) optimization of irrigation efficiency; (d) control of waterborne diseases; and (e) investments in water mobilization. Furthermore, a number of changes were undertaken or suggested during the mid-term review mission of May 2001: (a) project implementation would be extended to six years; (b) additions were made to some project components: technical assistance, training and equipment to the RBA; strengthening of the - 3 - DGH and more equipment and materiels for the AGR/SEEN for carrying out applied research and demonstrations with the three ORMVA; and (c) unit costs as well as physical and price contingencies were adjusted. Even with these additions, which in no way changed the overall project's objectives, the project's total cost was reduced from US$25.6 million to US$21.0 million, mainly because of savings primarily in terms of consultancy services and because of the favorable currency fluctuations between the DH, the US$ and the French Franc (the IBRD loan was initially composed of US$10 million and FF 59 million). Further reduction in project's costs and cancellation of Loan proceeds were made for the same reasons. 3.5 Quality at Entry: As already indicated, the project addressed the right priorities and its specific objectives were clear although the main objective was overly ambitious especially after the reduction in project size. The appraisal team correctly identified the initial difficulties associated with carrying out the institutional reforms envisaged under the project. The project was prepared by the FAO/CP in 1994 on the basis of the ongoing Water Sector Review undertaken by the Bank. A Bank pre-appraisal mission took place in 1995 and, at the request of GOM, reduced the project size from about US$200 million suggested during the preparation phase to about US$90 million (for example: the Dachr El Oued Dam component was removed; later this dam was constructed based on the studies financed by the Bank through a Japanese PHRD Grant and with the help of Arab financial institutions). Once more, at GOM request, the project size was reduced to US$ 25.6 million at appraisal (the effluent treatment plant component was cancelled as GOM preferred obtaining grants rather than loans for this type of operation). The Bank using its own preparation budget as well as the PHRD Grant, was able to undertake a large number of useful studies related to water resources management which very much helped in shaping the Government and the Bank strategic orientations for the water sector, finding different sources for financing some of the original components which were later cancelled and defining the various project's components and ensuring that they were ready for implementation. Despite the fact that the GOM was totally and strongly committed to the project's objectives especially during project's preparation and during the first years of project's implementation, the Bank underestimated the procedural complexities associated with the establishment of an RBA (large numbers of decrees and arrêtés - public orders- to process through the national administrative, political and legislative systems). Also, the two key ministries (the Ministry of Interior (MoI) and the Ministry of Industry and Commerce (MoIC)), their approval being essential to the enactment of some of the necessary decrees and arrêtés, were not sufficiently involved during project formulation. Concerning the overall implementation capacity of the Borrower, the Staff Appraisal Report (SAR) had recognized that the depth of the policy and institutional reforms envisaged under the project represented a substantial challenge for the Government. For all the preceding reasons, project quality at entry is only deemed as "satisfactory". 4. Achievement of Objective and Outputs 4.1 Outcome/achievement of objective: On the whole, the achievement of the project's specific objectives (establishing an institutional framework for integrated water resources management and the creation of a River Basin Agency in the Oum-er-R'bia basin; improving Government's capacity for water resources planning; improving water use - 4 - efficiency; increasing effectiveness of existing hydraulic infrastructure; introducing water pollution control measures) is considered satisfactory. The key elements of an institutional framework for integrated water resources management are in place, namely: a national water master plan, a national water quality protection plan, a national flood protection plan and the recommendations of a study for water pricing (Section 4.2). Moreover, the technical assistance, training, equipment and materials provided to the ex- DGH (now SEEau) have clearly improved the Directorate's capacity to plan and to manage the use of water resources, as well as to start implementing the water pollution control measures identified in the national water quality protection plan. Furthermore, a RBA has been set up in the Oum-er-Rbia although the legal status of its staff is still not yet finalized and it does not yet have all the necessary legal and financial tools to fulfill its obligations mandated by the 1995 Water Law. Nevertheless, most of the procedural work for removing these shortcomings is now complete and the RBA should be fully operational in 2005. Concerning the irrigation efficiency, trials and demonstrations carried out under the project, mainly in surface, sprinkling and trickle irrigation techniques, have resulted in improved technical packages. These packages have already resulted in a substantial number of farmers (over 4,500 ha in the three ORMVAs of Doukkala, Tadla and Souss-Massa) increasing their yields and reducing their production costs. In addition, the effectiveness of existing hydraulic infrastructure was increased through the partial rehabilitation of the Nakhla dam (resulting in pumping cost savings estimated at around DH 700,000 per year) and the recharge of the Souss aquifer (which will result in additional five million m³ of water available for irrigation ­ section 4.3). Furthermore, project support to the control of waterborne diseases in the Oum-er-Rbia basin has strengthened the structures of the DELM in six provinces covering the basin. Since the MoPH did not request a specific budget for the project in the first years of implementation from the Ministry of Finance and Privatization (MoF), the corresponding activities started only in 2001 and it is therefore too early to see concrete evidence of reduction in the incidence of waterborne diseases. Nevertheless, the surveillance coverage of control stations and problematic sites in the Oum-er-R'bia has substantially increased, as well as the percentage of sites covered through biological control (Annex 1). 4.2 Outputs by components: Water resources planning (After the re-organization of components and the Mid-Term Review US$11.57 million or 57 % of project costs; at closing US$ 6.78 or 37% of the final costs). ICR Rating: Satisfactory. This component, implemented by the ex-DGH (currently SEEau) consisted of : (a) development of a national water master plan, a national water quality protection plan, a national flood protection plan and a pricing study for bulk water; and (b) provision of technical assistance, training, equipment and materials to the DGH. The preparation of the national water master plan included: (a) preparation of a detailed inventory of the information available on water resources; (b) setting up a database; (c) carrying out detailed studies related to water resources planning; (d) making recommendations for improving the institutional context; and (e) presenting a national master plan. The consensus is that the recent prioritization of public investments over the long term, resulting already from the analytical work carried out, has allowed GOM to make substantial savings in terms of public finance by postponing to a later date (or possibly canceling) the construction of costly infrastructure deemed uneconomical at present (i.e, Doukkala Irrigation Phase II). Moreover, all this analytical work led to the updating and strengthening of the information and database on water resources. The preparation of the national water quality protection plan included a diagnosis of the quality of - 5 - water resources, an analysis of sources of pollution and their impact on water quality, and the preparation of a water quality protection plan for the Oum-er-Rbia basin, as well as for the country in general. All those steps have been completed and the computer model developed for the Oum-er-Rbia in the context of this exercise has been extremely useful for formulating remedial measures against pollution. This computer model is now being replicated for two other basins: Loukkos and Moulouya. Also, as a result of the project, a new budget line of DH 60 million per year has been included in the 2005 budget (which may double in 2006) for flood control and effluent treatment in the various river basins of Morocco. Similar to the national water plan, the analytical work in this case has also led to the updating and enrichment of the information and data available. The preparation of the national flood protection plan included the formulation of a typology of floods, a study of the vulnerable sites as well as prevention measures to be adopted for each site, and a study on the institutional context and the preparation of a detailed action plan. All those steps have been completed and the resulting action plan combines physical realization with institutional measures such as the formulation of a number of decrees dealing with the organizational and legal aspects of flood protection. The Government has already started implementing parts of the action plan which should result in a more rational and cost effective-use of public money. The completed study on bulk water pricing included an analysis of the tariff system, an evaluation of the fees paid for bulk water and the formulation of a methodology for assessing the cost of bulk water. This study clearly demonstrates that the potential revenues in terms of fees to be collected by the river basin agencies for water extraction by users cannot compensate for expenses related to the numerous responsibilities entrusted to them by the Water Law. This result confirms the necessity for Government to finance some of the responsibilities entrusted to the agency (i.e. O&M of dams and main canals, domestic waste treatment, etc.). In 1999, the provision of technical assistance and training, as well as equipment and materials to the DGH, has been contracted to the FAO. All of the technical assistance (more than 30 operations) and training (more than 10 programs, mainly in water resources planning and management) have been completed. Moreover a large number of computer and field equipment, as well as 29 vehicles, have been delivered to the DGH and the six other newly established river basin agencies using the proceeds of the Loan. In total, 21 studies have been completed and one (modeling of the Triffa aquifer) is to be completed in 2005. Most of these studies included several phases, with a number of reports due at the end of each phase (draft, intermediate and final). Given the wide scope of several studies, a number of ministries and organizations were involved. Establishment of an RBA (After the re-organization of components and the Mid-Term Review US$1.14 million or 7 % of project costs; at closing US$ 4.25 or 24% of the final costs). ICR Rating: Satisfactory. This component provided technical assistance and equipment to the agency for: (a) setting up its management and information system - MIS; (b) installing a hydrological measuring system and a network of 12 meteorological stations; (c) equipping the laboratory for water analysis; and (d) preparing a communication plan. All of these actions have been carried out except for a part of the hydrological measuring system for real time data transmission (data measuring was planned to be transmitted by telecommunication, but the DGH realized that such a system would be too costly to operate for the time being. In agreement with the Bank, the "real time" transmission of data was cancelled and replaced by the purchase of additional equipment, mainly water levels and rainfall gauges, to strengthen the current nationwide hydrological measuring network). - 6 - Although the MIS is substantially completed and tested, it is not yet fully operational mainly because of the delay in staff training, originally planned for 2004 but now scheduled for 2005. In addition, the human resources management module is not fully operational because the legal status of the Agency's staff (from working for the ex-Department of Hydraulic Resources of the MoPW to working for a public entity - Établissement public à caractère administratif) has not yet been finalized. The RBA was created by decree in 1998, before loan signature, its Director nominated in February 1999 and its executive Board members appointed in 2001. To date, the two most important decrees related to water extraction (irrigation, electricity, potable water, and industry) and to water pollution have been published. The publication of these two decrees was followed by the enactment of a number of arrêtés stating the course of action to be followed for each specific situation. In the case of the decree for water extraction, three main arrêtés have been published, dealing, respectively, with the collection of fees for electricity (through the ONE), irrigation (through the ORMVAs), and potable water (through the ONEP). The arrêté related to the collection of fees for industrial water use is still under preparation, as well as arrêtés complementing the decree for water pollution. All those are expected to be finalized in 2005. Meanwhile, a large number of minor decrees (20) and arrêtés (30) have already been published. At present, the agency's main sources of funds come from budgetary allocations for staff and payment of fees from the ONE (paid since 2002) and ORMVAs (started in 2005), as the relevant arrêtés are published and the collection methods have been agreed with these two entities. Under the circumstances, the agency does not yet have enough revenues to fulfill its mandate: the provision of financial assistance to the local governments (collectivités locales), ORMVAs, industrial complexes, etc., to carry out water and sanitation improvement works and optimum multi-year budget planning is not always easy, especially in the light of Government delays in allocating yearly subsidies to cover expenditures directly related to the Agency former duties as Regional Departments of Hydraulics (i.e., O&M of infrastructure). Nevertheless, Government is currently finalizing the protocols for such subsidies. Meanwhile, the Oum-er-R'bia agency already carried out a number of studies related to industrial waste treatment in 1994. These studies should certainly lead to concrete financial assistance in 2005. - 7 - Optimization of water use efficiency in irrigation (After the re-organization of components and the Mid-Term Review US$3.00 million or 14 % of project costs; at closing US$ 2.55 or 14% of the final costs). ICR Rating: Satisfactory. This component, implemented by the ORMVAs and the Experimentation, Trials and Standards Unit (SEEN) of the Department of Rural Works (AGR), consisted in development of: (a) experimental stations, field trials and demonstrations, as well as farmers and ORMVA staff training in Doukkala, Tadla and Souss-Massa; (b) environmental irrigation monitoring in these three ORMVAs; and (c) a national study on modern private irrigation. All these actions have been completed. More than 2,800 days of training and study tours were delivered to AGR's field staff as well as to farmers. Equipment for the demonstrations (including 2,500 tubular siphons) were procured and six land planners were retained for land levelling activities. Some 144 trials (covering more than 580 ha) were carried out in stations and fields on the following topics: crop water requirements, localized irrigation, improved surface irrigation techniques and sprinkler irrigation. There is clear evidence that a substantial number of farmers have adopted the recommended technical packages. Nevertheless, the overall beneficial impact was somewhat limited due to the lack of adequate means (staff and transportation required by the extension services). Fortunately, the upcoming externally-financed applied research project (in Tadla, with the support of the International Centre for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas) should be able to capitalize on the trials' results. Concerning environmental monitoring, a system was implemented in the Doukkala and Tadla for assessing water and soil qualities. This has helped identify the locations and causes of degradation as well as the remedial measures to be taken. The AGR now intends to replicate this system in five other irrigated areas outside the project zone. The national study on private irrigation, carried out by the AGR, included an assessment of the situation, potentialities and performances, an identification of possible options for development and the preparation of an action plan. Finally, the project has provided technical equipment and consumables to the SEEN, as well as staff training. Under the project, more than 400 irrigation equipment trial certificates have been delivered by the SEEN (now required for Government subsidy eligibility under certain types of irrigation) and almost 45,000 soil and water analysis tests have been conducted for private individuals, mainly farmers. Control of waterborne diseases (After the re-organization of components and the Mid-Term Review US$ 1.13 million or 5 % of project costs; at closing US$ 0.50 or 3% of the final costs). ICR Rating: Moderately Satisfactory. This component, implemented by the DELM, is meant to reinforce DELM's ongoing National Surveillance and Waterborne Diseases Control Program. It consisted in strengthening the structure and staff of the DELM in the Oum-er-Rbia basin, covering six provinces: Khouribga, Azilal, Beni Mellal, Khénifra, El Kelaa and Settat, and educating the populations in good hygiene practices and in waterborne disease control. The implementation of these actions only started in 2001 due to initial budgetary constraints (see Section 4.1). A regional laboratory in Marrakech was built and equipped in 2004. The construction of a second one, planned for Beni Mellal, will only start in January 2005 after project closing because the initially contracted firm withdrew and a new call for tenders had to be launched. Additional equipment was also provided to five provincial laboratories. Moreover, various equipment for mobile laboratories and pesticide handling, as well as computer equipment, were procured. One vehicle was also provided to the MoPH's in each of the six provinces concerned. Unfortunately, the awareness campaigns (using external technical assistance) planned under the project have not taken place due to lack of DELM funding for the required technical assistance. Budget restrictions also prevented planned technical assistance for the stratification of risk areas for waterborne diseases to be undertaken. Nevertheless, MoPH staff conducted awareness activities using the equipment and vehicles provided by the project and were able to initiate the stratification of risk areas independently. - 8 - The planned staff training was not carried out in time because the contract with the Institut national de l'hygiène and Faculté de médecine de Rabat could not be finalized due to some legal problems. Instead, a direct arrangement with the ONEP was agreed upon and training (which will not be financed by the Bank loan) started in 2005. Investments in water mobilization (After the re-organization of components and the Mid-Term Review US$ 4.20 million or 20 % of project costs; at closing US$ 3.92 or 2% of the final costs). ICR Rating: Satisfactory. These investments included : (a) the rehabilitation of Nakhla dam; (b) the artificial recharge of the Souss aquifer; and (c) a geophysical study for the Triffa Plain aquifer. Concerning Nakhla dam, the SAR based itself on preliminary studies, and planned the rehabilitation of the upstream concrete face of the dam. However, detailed studies financed by the project determined that the water losses were primarily emanating from the foundations and not from the upstream face of the dam. Consequently, it was attempted to reduce the losses by injecting the foundations. An evaluation of the works completed in 2002, undertaken by an international expert in 2003, determined that: (a) injections have reduced the losses; (b) to better assess dam performance, a monitoring system should be implemented prior to any further rehabilitation; (c) deeper foundation injections should be performed; and (c) the dam's concrete face would eventually have to be rehabilitated. Because of their long implementation period, these additional interventions will have to be carried out after project closing by the SEEau (work have already started for item (b)). The artificial recharge of the Souss aquifer included the construction of a new infiltration weir as well as the rehabilitation of five existing weirs. The study of the Triffa Plain aquifer included a synthesis of the existing data, 60 km of seismic profiling and interpretation, and the preparation of a final report. The synthesis has been carried out and one deep drilling operation was undertaken. Given the incomplete data provided by this deep well, the SEEau, with the Bank's agreement, decided to execute three more reconnaissance wells in 2004. Finally, the modeling of the aquifer was initiated in 2004 and is expected to be complete by August 2005. 4.3 Net Present Value/Economic rate of return: At appraisal, the Economic Rates of Return (ERRs) and the Net Present Values (NPVs) were calculated for three investments: (i) the recharge of the Souss aquifer; (ii) the rehabilitation of the Nakhla dam; and (iii) the setting up of a real-time information system in the Oum-er-R'bia basin. These investments represented 43% of the project's total cost and their respective ERR ranged from 120% in the case of the Nakhla dam to 43% for the Souss aquifer and 38% for the real-time information system. The ERRs and NPVs were recalculated for Souss and Nakhla as well as for the strengthening of the actual nationwide water measuring network which replaced the real-time information system (see hereafter). Working assumptions for the calculations are given in the economic analysis presented in Annex 3. The analysis is based on actual data on the project's investment/recurrent costs and projections concerning the benefits (calculated using data provided by the implementing agencies). A. Recharge of the Souss aquifer. The recharge consisted of the construction of a new infiltration sill as well as the rehabilitation of five existing ones. Based on an economic pre-evaluation of the recharge conducted in January 2002, it was estimated that about 7.8 million m³ per year will injected into the water table and as a result an additional 6.3 million m³ will become available for irrigation. Assuming an irrigation efficiency of 80%, five millions m³ per year could then be used for additional crop production. Based on the information available at the ORMVA of Souss, it is estimated that the yearly total benefits would be DH 12.9 million which do not include possible savings in pumping costs if the water table is allowed to rise. The ERR is estimated at 49% over 20 years with a NPV, at the opportunity capital - 9 - cost of 10%, of DH 48,597 (US$ 5,460 of 2004) ­ see Annex 3. The recalculated rate is slightly higher than the 43% in the SAR. A 20% shortfall in the projected benefits would still yield a rate of 44%. B. Rehabilitation of the Nakhla dam. At appraisal, the reconstruction of the upstream concrete face of the dam was envisaged. However, it was later concluded that the most of the water losses originated at the foundation level. It was therefore decided to reduce the losses through injections to the foundation. The losses are estimated at more than four million m³ each year (see Table 2 of the economic analysis). However, only part of this water (between 20% and 35% over the last years) needs to be pumped yearly (by the Office national de l'eau potable) depending on the climatic conditions. It is estimated that the savings in pumping costs is of the order of DH 700,000 per year and the ERR would then be at 8% over 20 years. This rate is low because the rehabilitation works were only a small first phase of a more elaborate works. The rate is also much lower than at appraisal not only due to the change in approach (injections as opposed to reconstruction), but also because the partial works carried out will not postpone the construction of the Amsa dam as assumed at appraisal. Finally, the foundations injection work has certainly enhanced the dam safety however this was not quantified and did not enter into the ERR calculations. C. Strengthening of the actual nationwide water measuring network. Measuring was planned to be "in real time" through telecommunication. However, after further studies and in agreement with the Bank, this approach was replaced by the procurement of additional equipment (mainly water level and rainfall gauges) to strengthen the existing national network with a view of water saving especially during drought periods. It is estimated that the investments made under the project will allow the saving of half an irrigation water turn over 10 turns (5%) in one year (assumed to be drought) out of four actual years. Some 26.25 million m³ of water would then be saved each year (see Table 3 of the economic analysis). The yearly total benefits would be of DH 52 million and the ERR is estimated at 113% over 20 years with a NPV of DH 243,690 (US$ 27,381 of 2004). For comparison, the ERR calculated in the SAR was 38% based on the setup of real-time water management including automatic flow metering and computerized decision support systems. The fact that the calculated rate is substantially higher than in the SAR supports the assumption that strengthening the network is more economical (low operating costs). A 20% shortfall in the projected benefits would still yield a very robust ERR of 99%. In summary, the three activities for which an ERR was calculated represent 24% of the project's total cost ­ as opposed to 43% in the SAR ­ and their combined ERR (not calculated in the SAR) is of 79% over 20 years with a NPV of DH 291,768 (US$ 32,783 of 2004). A 20% shortfall in the overall benefits would still yield a rate of 69%. 4.4 Financial rate of return: No financial rate of return was calculated at appraisal. However, in the case of the trials and demonstrations carried out for surface and drip irrigation under the project, the data recently provided by the ORMVAs of Doukkala, Tadla and Souss suggest potential increases in net profit margins by irrigators ­ with the improved techniques demonstrated under the project ­ of the order of 25% to 150%, depending on the types of techniques used (mainly drip irrigation or surface irrigation (Robta) with better ground leveling/surfacing and sometimes use of tubular siphons). 4.5 Institutional development impact: To date, the project has had a moderate institutional development impact. However, this should - 10 - rapidly improve in the coming of years once the RBA is fully operational. The establishment of an RBA in the Oum-er-Rbia basin (and the six other RBAs in Morocco) was the most important achievement from an institutional point of view. The principle of having fully integrated management of the water resources in the Oum-er-Rbia, through a basin agency, is now widely accepted. At this stage, the remaining problems associated with the enactment of decrees and arrêtés are mainly related to fee collection methods and delivery of the expected financial assistance (aides), especially for pollution control. Those fees were initially viewed by some ministries, particularly MoA and MoI, as an additional tax on water users. It is now recognized that to ensure reliability and sustainability, the delivered water has to be paid for, polluters need to pay for the pollution they generate and that, in any event, agency revenues must be reinvested in the community to promote environmentally sound water uses. The project has implemented key institutional elements for integrated water resources management, mainly: a national water plan, a national water quality protection plan, a national flood protection plan and the recommendations of a water pricing study. Benefits are already apparent from these outputs (section 4.2), however, it is still too early to judge the subsequent use that the Government will make of the plans and studies, and, consequently, their ultimate usefulness. Finally, training of the RBA and SEEau staff has been carried out using project funds, with the assistance of the French Basin Agency Adour-Garonne and the French Ministry of Environment. It is important to note that the European Union has recently decided to allocate funds (reportedly DH 150 million) for strengthening the river basin agencies in Morocco, some of which should be allocated to the Oum-er-Rbia RBA. 5. Major Factors Affecting Implementation and Outcome 5.1 Factors outside the control of government or implementing agency: The factors beyond Government or implementing agency control were: delays in completion of studies by several consultants and the insufficient initial data on Nakhla dam prior to appraisal. However, these two factors were dealt with during the course of the project as previously described in Section 4. 5.2 Factors generally subject to government control: During the first years of project implementation, general budgetary restrictions delayed the preparation of some studies as well as the start of the activities on waterborne diseases control. In 2003, the MoPW was transformed into the MATEE and the DGH became the SEEau. Project coordination became somewhat inefficient because the Project Coordinator was transferred to the MATEEand was never replaced (Section 7.6). In this respect, the Government should have ensured proper coordination mechanisms and financing for the project. Furthermore, the collaboration between a number of ministries, such as the MoPW, MoA, MoI and MoIC for the enactment of decrees and arrêtés was not always as proactive as it should have been. The most senior Government authorities should have intervened to ensure the necessary collaboration on the part of all the ministries involved. 5.3 Factors generally subject to implementing agency control: - 11 - The MoPW selected only one person (coordinator) to staff the UCP ­ see Section 7.6. This coordinator joined the newly created MATEE and was never officially replaced. As a result, project coordination between several entities, DGH, DMN, ORMVAs, SEEN and DELM, was somewhat weak during the last two years of project's implementation. 5.4 Costs and financing: The Bank loan was composed of US$10 million and FF 59 million (to become 8.99 million in 2002), and the loan was declared effective in January 1999. There were three loan amount cancellations: FF 13 million in 2001 (equivalent to 1.98 million) after the mid-term review; 1.5 million in 2002; and 1.5 million late in 2004 (the three equivalent to 4.98 million). At appraisal, the project implementation was estimated to take four years. The project was extended twice by a total of two and a half years and closed in December 2004. The main reasons for the cancellations were due to cost savings from studies and equipment, as well as favorable currency fluctuations, particularly given the delays in works carried out between the DH, and US$. The project extensions were motivated by the additional time required by implementing agencies to fully implement some time-consuming activities which had already started but were behind schedule. The second extension was agreed by the Bank provided certain conditions were met, including that the last arrêté necessary for the payment of fees for potable water and the decree for water discharges be published before December 2003. As of May 1, 2005, the US$ 10 million was totally disbursed plus 3.40 million, thus making the total disbursement from the Bank Loan at US$ 14.46 million (equivalent) or 72% of the original loan (Annex 2) or 97% of the final Loan. The final estimate of the total project costs is equivalent to US$ 18.00 million or 70% of the appraisal estimate (Annex 2). The Government's contribution, estimated at a total of US$ 3.65 million, represents 68% of the initial appraisal estimate, in line with the Bank's contribution. 6. Sustainability 6.1 Rationale for sustainability rating: Project sustainability is rated as "likely". The Oum-er-Rbia RBA has been formally set up and the remaining administrative and financial issues will most likely be resolved before the end of 2005. It is therefore expected that the RBA would become self financing through water and pollution charges. The principle of having fully integrated management for the water resources in the Oum-er-Rbia, through a basin agency, is now widely accepted by all the relevant ministries. The new regulatory and institutional framework and policy reforms have laid the foundation for a sustainable water resources management by providing the basis for efficient water resources allocation, by protecting against water pollution and floods and by ensuring stakeholders participation. The relevant authorities in MATEE consider the national water plan, the national water quality protection plan and the national flood protection plan as extremely useful methodological tools and there is evidence which confirms that. Finally, concerning the investments in water mobilization, the Government firmly intends to independently finance the additional works recommended for the rehabilitation of the Nakhla dam. In the case of this dam, as well as for the Souss aquifer, funds for regular infrastructure maintenance are already part of the yearly MATEE budget. 6.2 Transition arrangement to regular operations: - 12 - Each implementing agency (MATEE, MoA and MoPH) will carry out activities undertaken by the project. All of these activities are part of their respective work programs and no special measures are necessary for the transition to regular operations, other than assurances (already given in the course of the last supervision missions) that the ongoing works will be completed as planned after project closing. 7. Bank and Borrower Performance Bank 7.1 Lending: Moderately Satisfactory. The Bank was responsive to the country's urgent needs in terms of sector work. In this respect, the Bank helped the Government obtain a Japanese grant (PHRD) for sector work and FAO/CP resources were used for the WRMP's preparation. However, as previously mentioned, insufficient analytical work has been done to adjust the project design between preparation and appraisal, and not enough ownership-building was achieved with all the stakeholders (ex.MoI, MoIC). 7.2 Supervision: Satisfactory. The Bank supervision missions have more than compensated for appraisal shortcomings by adjusting project components promptly and efficiently. The launch mission was held in 1998, months ahead of loan signature in October 1998. The supervision missions were carried out regularly, with proper staff continuity and skill mix. The main constraints were identified in a timely fashion and issues were raised competently at the appropriate levels. Issues affecting the full legislative framework for the RBA were addressed during the second supervision mission in November 1998. The deficiencies in project coordination between implementing agencies (section 7.6) were raised repeatedly by the missions and the need to efficiently use the coordination committee set up under the project was emphasized. Failure on the part of the MoF to budget funds for the waterborne diseases control component was noted several times and the risk of component cancellation was clearly raised. Explicit performance indicators were not defined in the SAR but, nevertheless, Bank supervision missions, in collaboration with the implementing agencies, developed a set of key indicators (Annex 1) on the basis of the elements already available in the SAR. Unfortunately, there was little that the missions could do to accelerate the overall pace of the various institutional reforms planned under the project. Even the condition attached to the second loan extension, that the last arrêté necessary for the payment of dues for potable water and the decree for water discharges be published before December 2003, could not be fully met. Finally, a formal restructuring of the project (due to the re-organization of the project's components and sub-components and to the cancellation of some of the Loan Proceeds) was not warranted as the specific project's objectives and all the projects components were not changed during the course of the project. 7.3 Overall Bank performance: Based on the above considerations, the overall Bank performance is considered satisfactory. Borrower 7.4 Preparation: Satisfactory. Government participation during project preparation was very constructive. Both the - 13 - Minister of the MoPW and the Director of DGH were supportive and directly involved in project preparation and appraisal. The ministry provided an impressive amount of human resources and time in carrying out the sector work as well as project preparation. 7.5 Government implementation performance: Moderately Satisfactory. The Government's performance at implementation was highlighted by the transformation of the MoPW into the MATEE in 2003, and by the consequent conversion of the DGH into the SEEau. Project implementation was difficult because of the number of implementing agencies (five in total) involved and their respective departments. Moreover, the general budgetary restrictions experienced, particularly during the early years of the project, caused implementation delays. As indicated earlier, beyond the issue of weak project coordination, the Government should have been more attentive to ensuring proper coordination between the ministries to guarantee timely project financing. 7.6 Implementing Agency: Satisfactory. The project's implementing agencies were the MoPW (comprising the DGH, DMN, RBA), MoA and MoPH. The RBA is theoretically autonomous (Établissement public à caractère administratif), but is still under the supervision and financial dependence of the MATEE. The SAR specified that a technical coordination committee was to be created as well a UCP. This committee was indeed created and held its first meeting in April 1998, before loan signature. A coordination unit was also set up but composed only of a project coordinator, whereas the SAR planned for three assistants (technical, administrative and accounting, those functions were subsequently provided by the regular staff of the DGH ). Until the creation of the MATEE in 2003, the committee was operational although informal coordination meetings between representatives of the agencies (initiated by the coordinator) were the norm. The coordinator was reassigned when the MATEE was created and the committee and unit became almost inactive at that time. Nevertheless, progress reports were produced except for an 18-month period after the creation of the new ministry. Despite these shortcomings, the implementing agencies executed their respective components with competence and professionalism. Finally, even without formal coordination mechanisms after 2003, the SEEau was able to monitor all project activities and collaborate productively with the supervision missions. 7.7 Overall Borrower performance: Overall Borrower performance is rated satisfactory. 8. Lessons Learned The main key lessons learned are: l Project coordination with a large number of implementing agencies and directorates requires well established and efficient mechanisms. These mechanisms, including in most cases a steering committee and a fully fledged project coordination unit, should be set up before project start and given a clear mandate and terms of references. l Policy reforms and capacity building (institutional engineering) require much preparatory work and close supervision, especially in the case of creating new institutions. This is an area where the Government's commitment is absolutely necessary and should be secured beforehand.In this context, - 14 - the role of the Bank should be a provider of high quality technical assistance to move forward the required institutional reform agenda. l A project requiring new legislation takes longer than expected to implement. Therefore project's design should try to minimize the need for legislation or get it passed before implementation to the extent possible. If that is not possible, the implementation plan and the objectives should be adjusted in order to recognize the likely delays. l A project with strong emphasis on institutional development, policy reforms and strategic national studies is extremely difficult to implement. Therefore, it should not include too many of such components and should be simplified as much as possible. l Participation of all stakeholders in the project design is important. The ministries/agencies/people who will participate in the project implementation should be involved in the analysis of issues and provide inputs for project design. This is a key to promote ownership of project activities and gain support for project interventions. l A strong M&E unit should be set up at project start, not only to look at the physical and financial aspects of the project, but also to monitor its impact and sustainability. Moreover, sound performance indicators, essential to measuring the project's impact, should be carefully selected at the start of the project implementation.In the absence of indicators at the preparation/appraisal phases, it is difficult to demonstrate thereafter the project's results. l When large numbers of extensive studies are planned, the mechanisms and procedures for reviewing/monitoring the activities and validating the outputs should be kept as simple and as efficient as possible, particularly if several partners/ministries are concerned. l Fixing conditions, whether for loan negotiation, agreement or extension, should be approached with caution and only after ensuring that all the elements are in place for making the required outcomes possible. l Overseas training using Loan proceeds is practically impossible, therefore at the preparation/appraisal phases alternative sources for such project component, if deemed absolutely important, should be sought. l Providing technical assistance and training to the implementing agencies through a contract with an international agency such as FAO, to be signed at the onset of the project, is a good and efficient way to ensure that those two components are implemented. 9. Partner Comments (a) Borrower/implementing agency: (b) Cofinanciers: (c) Other partners (NGOs/private sector): 10. Additional Information - 15 - Annex 1. Key Performance Indicators/Log Frame Matrix Outcome / Impact Indicators: 1 Indicator/Matrix Projected in last PSR Actual/Latest Estimate Water Planning and Mobilization - Savings in pumping costs at the Nakhla NA 700 yearly dam (DH `000) - Additional water available with recharge of 5 yearly 5 yearly Souss aquifer (Mm3) Irrigated Agriculture - Number of hectares covered NA 4.500 1/ Health - Coverage of control stations (%) 100 94 - Coverage of problematic sites (%) 60 57 - Percentage of sites covered with biological 50 75 control - Bacteriological control level according to 50 37 norms (%) in urban distribution networks - Coverage of collective water points (%) 50 60 NA = Non-available. 1/ Does not take into account the final level of adoption by farmers due to lack of data. Output Indicators: 1 Indicator/Matrix Projected in last PSR Actual/Latest Estimate Water Planning and Mobilization - Number of studies ongoing (completed) 13 1(21) - Number of CW contracts ongoing 4 6(45 (completed) - Number of decrees published 13 21 - Number of public orders published 30 32 - Number of training days NA 4979 - Technical assistance (person /months) 50 62 (FAO) - Number of infiltration sills constructed 1 (5) 1(5) (rehabilitated) - Number of meteorological stations. 12 12 Irrigated Agriculture - Number of station trials (and hectares) NA 14 (24) - Number of trials in farmers' fields (and NA 130 (556) hectares) - Number of training sessions (and study NA 47 (140) tours) - Number of studies ongoing (completed) 4 (5) - Number of training days NA 2873 - Number of analyses and trials carried out N 45.000 et 400 Health - Number of training sessions NA 0 - Number of laboratories constructed 2 1 - Number of laboratories equipped. 2 7 1End of project - 16 - Annex 2. Project Costs and Financing Project Cost by Component (in US$ million equivalent) Appraisal Actual/Latest Percentage of Estimate Estimate Appraisal Component US$ million US$ million A. Water resources planning 14.70 6.78 46.1 B. Establishment of RBA 1.05 4.25 404.76 C. Optimization of water use in irrigation 3.15 2.55 80.9 D. Control of waterborne diseases 1.06 0.50 47.2 E. Investments in water mobilization E.1.Rehabilitation of Nakla Dam 1.80 0.43 23.9 E.2. Recharge of Souss aquifer 2.16 1.54 71.3 E.3. Study of Triffa aquifer 1.67 1.95 116.8 Total Baseline Cost 25.59 18.00 Total Project Costs 25.59 18.00 Total Financing Required 25.59 18.00 Project Costs by Procurement Arrangements (Appraisal Estimate) (US$ million equivalent) 1 Procurement Method Expenditure Category ICB NCB 2 N.B.F. Total Cost Other 1. Works 1.80 3.40 0.00 0.00 5.20 (1.40) (2.70) (0.00) (0.00) (4.10) 2. Goods 6.00 2.60 1.00 0.00 9.60 (4.80) (2.00) (0.80) (0.00) (7.60) 3. Services 0.00 10.40 0.00 10.40 () (0.00) (8.30) (0.00) (8.30) 4. Recurrent Costs 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.40 0.40 (0.00) (0.00) (0.00) (0.00) (0.00) Total 7.80 6.00 11.40 0.40 25.60 (6.20) (4.70) (9.10) (0.00) (20.00) Project Costs by Procurement Arrangements (Actual/Latest Estimate) (US$ million equivalent) 1 Procurement Method Expenditure Category ICB NCB 2 N.B.F. Total Cost Other 1. Works 0.00 3.10 0.17 0.00 3.27 (0.00) (2.49) (0.01) (0.00) (2.50) 2. Goods 2.73 3.63 0.64 0.00 7.00 (2.26) (2.88) (0.45) (0.00) (5.59) 3. Services 7.70 0.00 7.70 () () (6.37) (0.00) (6.37) 4. Recurrent Costs - 17 - 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.03 0.03 (0.00) (0.00) (0.00) (0.00) (0.00) Total 2.73 6.73 8.51 0.03 18.00 (2.26) (5.37) (6.83) (0.00) (14.46) 1/Figures in parenthesis are the amounts to be financed by the Bank Loan. All costs include contingencies. 2/Includes civil works and goods to be procured through national shopping, consulting services, services of contracted staff of the project management office, training, technical assistance services, and incremental operating costs related to (i) managing the project, and (ii) re-lending project funds to local government units. Project Financing by Component (in US$ million equivalent) Percentage of Appraisal Component Appraisal Estimate Actual/Latest Estimate Bank Govt. CoF. Bank Govt. CoF. Bank Govt. CoF. A. Water Res. planning 11.54 2.88 0.00 5.52 1.36 0.00 47.8 47.2 0.0 B. Establish RBA 0.86 0.48 0.00 3.54 0.71 0.00 411.6 147.9 0.0 C. Opt. of water use 2.46 0.68 0.00 1.87 0.68 0.00 76.0 100.0 0.0 D. Control of diseases 0.83 0.23 0.00 0.37 0.14 0.00 44.6 60.9 0.0 E. Investments in water mobilization E.1 Rehab. Nakhla 1.45 0.35 0.00 0.34 0.09 0.00 23.4 25.7 0.0 E.2 Recharge Souss 1.75 0.41 0.00 1.23 0.31 0.00 70.3 75.6 0.0 E.3 Study of Triffa 1.35 0.32 0.00 1.58 0.36 0.00 117.0 112.5 0.0 Grand Total 20.24 5.35 0.00 14.46 3.65 0.00 71.4 68.2 0.0 - 18 - Annex 3. Economic Costs and Benefits Background At appraisal. In the SAR of January 1998, the project's economic justification was based on improved efficiency in water use/management following the adoption of proposed policy and institutional reforms ­ including the setting up of a River Basin Agency ­ as well as capacity building for implementing public investment programs in the water sector. Furthermore, quantified benefits were estimated from the physical achievements aimed at improving the effectiveness of water mobilization. It was indicated in the report that the main benefits of such projects are essentially in terms of institutional strengthening and therefore difficult to quantify. Consequently, an Economic Rate of Return (ERR) and Net Present Value (NPV) were calculated for three investments only: (i) rehabilitation of the Nakhla dam; (ii) recharge of the Souss aquifer; and (iii) setting up a real-time information system in the Oum-er-R'bia basin. These investments represented 43% of the project's total cost and their ERR ranged from 120% in the case of the Nakhla dam to 43% for the Souss aquifer and 38% for the real-time information system. Present situation. Capacity building ­ particularly the setting up of the RBA ­ has taken a more important (strategic) role in the project than foreseen at appraisal. The physical realization (essentially civil works) at project completion were less in magnitude than planned at appraisal ­ see section 4.2 of ICR main text. Concerning the Nakhla dam, the reconstruction of the upstream concrete face was envisaged at appraisal. However, further studies established that the water leakages were primarily due to the foundations and it was therefore decided to reduce losses through injections to the foundations. A 2003 evaluation of the completed works concluded that the injections had the effect of partially reducing losses and that more injections would be executed at a later stage after additional investigations. These additional interventions will have to be carried out beyond the project's closing date under Government financing. In the case of the recharge of the Souss aquifer, out of the three types of works initially planned, two (rehabilitation of five sills and the construction of a new one) were initiated under the project. The third: construction of a sill via Oued Sghir was abandoned because of land tenure problems and unexpectedly high construction costs. Finally, the setting up of a real-time water management system has been dropped due to the high expected operating costs, and a strengthening of the actual nationwide water measuring network was financed instead. Project Benefits The benefits for the five project components can be summarized as follows: · Water resources planning. The preparation of a national water master plan,a national water quality protection plan, a national flood protection plan and a study for water pricing of bulk water; as well as the provision of technical assistance, training, equipment and materials to the DGH will allow for more efficient field interventions by the Ministère de l'aménagement du territoire, de l'eau et de l'environnement. However, these benefits in terms of institutional strengthening are extremely difficult to quantify. · Establishment of a River Basin Agency in Oum-er-Rbia. The main benefits of this component are also in terms of institutional strengthening and therefore extremely difficult to - 19 - quantify. Furthermore, the strengthening of some 200 hydrological and meteorological stations ­ over a larger area than planned at appraisal but not in real time ­ will allow for a more efficient management of the dams covered. · Improving water use efficiency in irrigation. The reinforcement of the capacities of the three Office Régional de Mise en Valeur Agricole ORMVA (Tadla, Doukkala and Souss-Massa) and their carrying out of the trials/demonstrations of improved technical packages for irrigation, as well as the training of staff and farmers, will result in the adoption of those improved techniques by a number of farmers. The benefits of those techniques, in terms of additional crop production at lower costs, could be quantifiable after few years of implementation. Those trials/demonstrations were carried out mainly in Tadla and Doukkala, and the techniques promoted were related to drip irrigation as well as to surface irrigation (Robta) with better ground leveling/surfacing and the use of tubular siphons. However, at present, the possible benefits in terms of additional irrigated production and net profits are not yet sufficiently tangible to warrant a full economic analysis. Despite the fact that substantial number of farmers have already adopted the trials' results, the overall beneficial impact is still limited due the somewhat still weak extension services. The current project did not deal with improving the extension services as this was already tackled , at a large scale, in other earlier Bank financed projects. Fortunately, the upcoming externally-financed applied research projects, such as the one in Tadla with the International Centre for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas, will be able to capitalize on these results and make the present project's investments worthwhile in the medium and long term. In addition, the completion of studies related to the environmental impact and to the "modern" irrigation, as well as the reinforcement of the SEEN, will allow for targeted and more efficient field interventions by the relevant public services; the benefits are however difficult to quantify, at least in the short term. · Control of waterborne diseases. The partial reinforcement of the structures of the DELM in charge of controlling waterborne diseases in the Oum-er-R'bia basin should reduce the incidence of the diseases over time. But it is too early yet to see any concrete evidence of such reduction ­ particularly since the component's implementation was two years late ­ and the provincial data available now are too weak to make reliable projections. · Investments in water mobilization. The « artificial » recharge of the Souss' water table will result in more water supply for the irrigators and perhaps also savings in pumping costs depending on the location. Furthermore, the « partial » rehabilitation of the Nakhla dam would save a part of the actual overall costs of pumping the seepage water back into the dam reservoir. The rehabilitation works will also better « secure » the dam against possible structural damages, but this type of benefit is much more difficult to quantify. Economic Analysis For the purpose of the present economic analysis, ERRs and NPVs have been recalculated for: o the recharge of the Souss aquifer; o the rehabilitation of the Nakhla dam; and o the strengthening of the actual nationwide water measuring network. In all cases, financial prices/costs were used as sufficient approximations of their - 20 - corresponding economic values in Morocco (same approach as in SAR). Also, no shadow pricing of the currency is necessary; there is no parallel (unofficial) market for the DH in the country. Value added taxes applied to studies and supplies (20%), as well as civil works (14%), were deducted from the project costs for the purpose of calculating the ERR. The respective benefits for each of the activities aforementioned are calculated as follows: A. Recharge of the Souss aquifer. As part of project execution, an economic pre-evaluation of the recharge was conducted by consultants in January 2002. With the construction of one sill and the rehabilitation of five others, it is estimated that 7.8 millions m³ per year will be injected into the water table and that, therefore, an additional 6.3 millions m³ (81%) would become available downstream for irrigation (see Table 1 of the supporting documents). Assuming an irrigation efficiency of 80%, the pre-evaluation document concluded that five millions m³ per year could be used for additional crop production (using a somewhat different set of assumptions, the SAR arrives at the same result). The information available in the ORMVAs indicates that the average water use for irrigation is of the order of 12,000 m³ per ha, which would allow the irrigation of an additional 423 ha each year. On the basis of an average net benefit of 30,621 DH per ha (see Table 1), the yearly total benefits due to the recharge of the Souss aquifer would then be DH 12.9 million. These are equivalent to DH 2.5 per m³ (slightly less than the DH 3 used in the SAR) and do not include possible savings in pumping costs if the water table is allowed to rise. Table 4 shows the calculation of the ERR which is estimated at 49% over 20 years with a NPV at the opportunity capital cost of 10% of DH 48,597 (US$ 5,460 of 2004). The recalculated rate is slightly higher than the 43% in the SAR. A 20% shortfall in the projected benefits would still yield a rate of 44%. B. Rehabilitation of the Nakhla dam. The main role of the dam is to supply the city of Tetouan and its neighborhood with drinkable water, along with other sources of supply such as the Smir dam and the Maritil aquifer. The water losses are estimated at more than four million m³ each year (see Table 2). However, only part of this water (between 20% and 35% over the last years) needs to be pumped by the ONEP depending on the climatic conditions. As only part of the rehabilitation works has been carried out, therefore, only part of the leakages has been stopped. For illustrative purposes, the average price charged by ONEP for delivering potable water in Tetouan is DH 6.55 per m³ (see Secteur de l'eau et de l'assainissement, Note de politique sectorielle, September 2004). Assuming that the Office's true delivery cost is around DH 5 per m³ and that 10% of this is saved due to the rehabilitation of the dam (injections already executed), DH 0.5 per m³ could be credited as a project benefit. Using an annual average volume pumped of 1.4 million m³ over the last three full years available (September 2001 ­ August 2003), the project benefit would then be of DH 700,000 per year. Table 4 of the supporting documents shows the calculation of the ERR is estimated at 8% over 20 years. The recalculated rate is much lower than at appraisal because of the change in approach ­ injections (partial rehabilitation) as opposed to reconstruction of the concrete face (full rehabilitation). Furthermore, it was argued in the economic analysis at appraisal that the rehabilitation of the dam would allow the postponement of the construction of the Amsa dam, therefore saving public money for now. But, there are three objections to this: i) there are several sources of water for serving the city of Tetouan, not only the Nakla dam; (ii) the construction of the Amsa dam is scheduled, in any event, for beyond 2020 - 21 - (estimated at 790 millions of DH in 1992); and (iii) the rehabilitation of the Nakla was partial only. C. Strengthening of the actual nationwide water measuring network. Table 3 of the supporting documents shows the areas covered by the hydrological and meteorological stations which have been strengthened. As a result, more information (and of higher quality) would become available to the SEEau, which should result in a more efficient water management. In the SAR, assuming a real-time information system, two types of benefits were claimed: (i) savings in irrigation water losses due to delays in transmitting instructions for dam operations; and (ii) better and timely information to irrigators about water availability, allowing for more efficient water use. However, strengthening stations nationwide instead, would primarily save water in periods of drought. The Moroccan authorities estimate that the investments made under the project will allow the saving of about half an irrigation water turn over 10 turns (5%) in one year (assumed to be drought) out of four actual years. On the basis of these assumptions, 26.25 million m³ of water would be saved each year. Using an average of DH 2 per m³ as an estimate of the potential benefits in irrigation ­ somewhat less than the DH 2.5 estimated for Souss since the irrigators are less progressive ­ the yearly total benefits due to the strengthening of the network would be of DH 52.5 million. Table 4 shows the calculation of the ERR which is estimated at 113% over 20 years with a NPV of DH 243,690 (US$ 27,381 of 2004). For comparison, the SAR also estimated an average benefit of DH 2 per m³ albeit over a smaller area since the intention was initially to cover the Oum-er-R'bia basin only. It is mainly because of the very high operating costs of such systems that the project opted instead for the procurement of equipment (mainly water level and rainfall gauges) to strengthen the present national network. The fact that the calculated rate is substantially higher than at appraisal (38% in the SAR) supports the assumption that the strengthening of the existing network is more economical in terms of operation. A 20% shortfall in the projected benefits would still yield a very robust ERR of 99%. Summary: The three activities for which an ERR was calculated represent 24% of the project's total cost (43% in SAR) and their combined ERR (not calculated in SAR) is of 79% over 20 years with a NPV of DH 291,768 (US$ 32,783 of 2004). A 20% shortfall in the overall benefits would still yield a rate of 69%. - 22 - Annex 4. Bank Inputs (a) Missions: Stage of Project Cycle No. of Persons and Specialty Performance Rating (e.g. 2 Economists, 1 FMS, etc.) Implementation Development Month/Year Count Specialty Progress Objective Identification/Preparation 07/01/1994 7 ECONOMIST (2); AGRONOMIST (1); POLLUTION SPEC. (1); HYDRO-GEOLOGIST (1); DAM SPEC. (1); IRRIGATION ENG. (1) 11/01/1995 1 ECONOMIST (1) Appraisal/Negotiation 03/01/1995 7 ECONOMIST (2); SANITATION SPEC. (1); RIVER BASIN SPEC. (1); REMOTE SENSING SPEC. (1); AGRONOMIST (1); IRRIGATION ENG. (1) Appraisal: 7 ECONOMIST (1); COUNSEL 05/01/1996 (1); ENVIRONMENTAL SPEC. (1); HYDRAULIC WORKS SPEC. (1); PROJECT ANALYST (1); RIVER BASIN SPEC. (1); IRRIGATION ENG. (1) Post-Appraisal: 1 IRRIGATION ENG. (1) 10/01/1996 Post- Appraisal: 1 IRRIGATION ENG. (1) 05/01/1997 Negotiations: 3 IRRIGATION ENG. (2); 11/01/1997 COUNSEL (1) Supervision 05/08/98 3 TEAM LEADER (1); CIVIL S S ENG. (1); PROCUREMENT SPEC. (1) 11/04/1998 5 TEAM LEADER (1); CIVIL S S ENG. (1); FINANCIAL MANAG. SPEC. (2); RIVER BASIN SPEC. (1) 10/13/1999 3 TEAM LEADER (1); S S FINANCIAL MANAG. SPEC. (1); RIVER BASIN SPEC. (1) 12/04/2000 5 TEAM LEADER (1); HS S FINANCIAL MANAG. SPEC. (1); CIVIL ENG. (1); RIVER BASIN SPEC. (1); PROCUREMENT SPEC. (1) 12/04/2000 3 TEAM LEADER (1); S S - 23 - FINANCIAL MANAG. SPEC. (1); SECTOR MANAGER (1) 05/04/2001 (MTR) 6 TEAM LEADER (1); S S FINANCIAL MANAG. SPEC. (1); OPERATIONAL OFFICER (1); IRRIGATION ENG. (1); RIVER BASIN SPEC. (2) 01/24/2002 7 TEAM LEADER (1); S S FINANCIAL MANAG. SPEC. (1); IRRIGATION/AGRICULTURE SPEC. (1); WATER RESOURCES SPEC. (1); RIVER BASIN MANAG. SPEC. (1); WATER TREATMENT SPEC. (1); COMMUNICATION SPEC. (1) 10/03/2002 5 TEAM LEADER (1); S S IRRIGATION ENG. (1); FINANCIAL MANAG. SPEC. (1); WATER RESOURCES SPEC. (1); RIVER BASIN SPEC. (1) 04/16/03 5 TEAM LEADER (1); S S FINANCIAL MANAG. SPEC. (1); RIVER BASIN SPEC. (1); IRRIGATION ENG. (2) 11/12/2003 3 TEAM LEADER (1); S S FINANCIAL MANAG. SPEC. (1); RIVER BASIN SPEC. (1) 06/08/2004 5 TEAM LEADER (1); S S FINANCIAL MANAG. SPEC. (1); RIVER BASIN SPEC. (1); IRRIGATION ENGINEER (1); AGRIC. ECONOMIST (1) ICR 12/15/2004 5 TEAM LEADER (1); S S FINANCIAL MANAG. SPEC. (1); RIVER BASIN SPEC. (1); WATER RESOURCES SPEC. (1); AGRIC. ECONOMIST (1) - 24 - (b) Staff: Stage of Project Cycle Actual/Latest Estimate No. Staff weeks US$ ('000) Identification/Preparation 25 100,000 Appraisal/Negotiation 65 250,000 Supervision 110 450,000 ICR 12 50,000 Total 212 850,000 - 25 - Annex 5. Ratings for Achievement of Objectives/Outputs of Components (H=High, SU=Substantial, M=Modest, N=Negligible, NA=Not Applicable) Rating Macro policies H SU M N NA Sector Policies H SU M N NA Physical H SU M N NA Financial H SU M N NA Institutional Development H SU M N NA Environmental H SU M N NA Social Poverty Reduction H SU M N NA Gender H SU M N NA Other (Please specify) H SU M N NA Private sector development H SU M N NA Public sector management H SU M N NA Other (Please specify) H SU M N NA - 26 - Annex 6. Ratings of Bank and Borrower Performance (HS=Highly Satisfactory, S=Satisfactory, U=Unsatisfactory, HU=Highly Unsatisfactory) 6.1 Bank performance Rating Lending HS S U HU Supervision HS S U HU Overall HS S U HU 6.2 Borrower performance Rating Preparation HS S U HU Government implementation performance HS S U HU Implementation agency performance HS S U HU Overall HS S U HU - 27 - Annex 7. List of Supporting Documents Table 1 Recharge of the Souss Aquifer millions de m³ Eau injectée dans % à Eau Rendement Eau la nappe déduire mobilisable technique disponible Réhabilitation de 5 seuils et aménagement en aval de 2.8 25% 2.1 80% 1.68 dispositifs de division des écoulements Dérivation d'une partie des eaux de l'oued Talekjount dans 5.0 15% 4.25 80% 3.4 l'oued Talemt Total 7.8 6.35 5.08 Marge nette sur production en 2004 dans la zone de l'aquifer (DH/ha), y compris amortissement: Luzerne 11088 Clementine 19195 Tomate 76897 Dans ces conditions, un ha consomme en général 12,000 m³ d'eau. Moyenne pondérée par l'assolement: Les 5.08 millions d'eau disponible avec la recharge de l'aquifer de 30621 Souss permettent donc d'irriguer 423 ha de plus. Source: Étude des dispositifs de recharge artificielle de la nappe du Souss, Évaluation économique et environnementale (Mission 3), DGH, janvier 2002, et l'ORMVA de Souss. Table 2 Rehabilitation of the Nakhla Dam Pompage à l'aval du barrage de Nakhla Réhabilitation Période Sept2000-Août2001 Sept2001-Août2002 Sept2002-Août2003 Sept2003-Avril2004 Volume de fuite 4.30 4.10 7.00 3.30 Volume pompé 0.96 1.40 1.90 0.73 % pompé 22.3% 34.1% 27.1% 22.1% Source: L'ONEP - 28 - Table 3 Strengthening of the Nationwide Water Measuring Network Nombre de stations Pluie Niveau d'eau Piézométrie 95 54 51 Millions de m³ Périmètre Complexe/barrage Besoins en mars-août Économie 1/ Basse Moulouya Mohamed V - Hassan II 316 16 Gharb Idriss 1er - Allal El Fassi - Al Wahda 452 23 Beht El Kansera 183 9 Doukkala Al Massaira 316 16 Beni Moussa Bin El Ouisdane 361 18 Tessaout Moulay Youssef 109 5 Haouz Hassan 1er - Sidi Driss 126 6 N'Fis Lalla Takerkoust 45 2 Ziz Hassa Addakhil 65 3 Draa Mansour Eddahbi 135 7 Total 105 26.25 2/ 1/ Économie possible de 5% soit un demi-tour sur 10 tours d'eau. 2/ Il est supposé que cette économie se matérialize une année sur quatre, en période de sécheresse. - 29 - Tableau 4 Cashflow du Projet 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 - 2020 en DH courants en DH de 2004 Recharge de Souss (milliers de DH) Coûts d'investissement avec projet (milliers de DH, hors taxes) 2891 560 1118 9045 Coûts d'entretien (5%) 145 173 228 681 681 Volume d'eau disponible pour irrigation (millions de m³) 4 5 Nombre d'ha additionnels irrigables 360 423 Revenus nets (additionnels) possibles (milliers de DH) 11018 12963 Cashflow avant correction en DH constants 0 -2891 -705 -1291 -9273 10338 12282 Cashflow en DH de 2004 0 -3218 -782 -1414 -9273 10338 12282 Taux de rentabilité économique: 49% Net Present Value: 48,597 N.B.: Ceci n'inclut pas les réductions possibles dans les coûts de pompage si le niveau d'eau arrête de baisser. Les coûts incluent les investissements à financer jusqu'en février 2005. Réhabilitation de Nakhla Épargne en frais de pompage (milliers de DH 1/) 300 700 700 700 Coûts d'investissement avec projet (milliers de DH, hors taxes) 149 3173 289 Coûts d'entretien (5%) 7 166 181 181 181 181 Cashflow avant correction en DH constants -149 -3180 -455 119 519 519 519 Cashflow en DH de 2004 -164 -3540 -505 131 519 519 519 Taux de rentabilité économique: 8% Net Present Value: - 519 1/ Voir analyse économique Renforcement du réseau national de mesure hydrologique Volume d'eau disponible, mainly for irrigation (millions de m3) 13.1 26.3 26.3 Revenus nets (additionnels) possibles (milliers de DH) 26260 52500 52500 Coûts d'investissement avec projet (milliers de DH, hors taxes) 1084 1294 561 4552 15251 Coûts d'entretien (10%) 108 238 294 749 2274 2274 Cashflow avant correction en DH constants -1084 -1403 -798 -4846 10260 50226 50226 Cashflow en DH de 2004 -1199 -1561 -886 -5310 10260 50226 50226 Taux de rentabilité économique: 113% Net Present Value: 243,690 Cashflow combiné en DH de 2004 (Souss-Nakhla-Réseau) -1364 -8319 -2174 -6593 1506 61083 63027 Taux de rentabilité économique: 79% Net Present Value: 291,768 - 30 - Additional Annex 8. Borrower's Evaluation Report Le Projet de Gestion des Ressources en Eau a pour objectif de promouvoir la gestion intégrée des ressources en eau au Maroc telle que définie par la Loi sur l'Eau 10-1995 pour assurer à long terme l'équilibre de l'offre et de la demande en eau, en combinant la prise en compte des aspects quantitatifs et qualitatifs dans un cadre d'efficacité économique et d'équité sociale. Le Projet de Gestion des Ressources en Eau doit contribuer à atteindre cet objectif, à travers notamment l'appui à l'établissement de l'Agence de Bassin Hydraulique de l'Oum Er-Rbia, le renforcement de la capacité de plusieurs organismes publics intervenant dans le secteur de l'eau et l'investissement dans la mobilisation de l'eau. Le Projet comporte cinq composantes : · Appui à la planification de l'eau ; · Appui à la mise en place de l'Agence de Bassin Hydraulique de l'Oum Er-Rbia ; · Appui à la valorisation de l'eau d'irrigation ; · Appui à la lutte contre les maladies hydriques ; · Appui aux investissements physiques : exécuté par la DGH, comprenant les 3 opérations prioritaires : étude de la nappe profonde des Triffa, réalimentation de la nappe du Souss et réhabilitation du barrage de Nakhla. Le projet requiert d'importantes mesures institutionnelles pour sa mise en oeuvre, incluant : · l'approbation de décrets réglementant les redevances sur le prélèvement d'eau brute et le déversement d'eau polluée, pour permettre à l'ADB d'obtenir les ressources financières soutenant ses programmes d'investissement ; · La préparation du plan national de protection contre les inondations, · Le renforcement de la Direction Générale de l'Hydraulique. Un important programme d'études à caractère national a été réalisé dans le cadre du projet. Ces études concernent : Plan National de l'Eau : Cette importante étude vise l'élaboration d'une stratégie à long et moyen terme de développement des ressources en eau à l'échelle nationale. Elle comporte 5 missions: (i) analyse et synthèse des connaissances sur les ressources en eau; (ii) élaboration d'une base de données; (iii) études relatives à la planification des ressources en eau; (iv) options et recommandations pour la consolidation du contexte institutionnel; et (v) proposition pour le choix du plan national. L'étude constitue la base pour l'établissement du PNE à présenter au prochain Conseil Supérieur de l'Eau et du Climat. Etude de Tarification de l'Eau Brute : Cette étude comprend 3 missions: (i) diagnostic des systèmes - 31 - tarifaires; (ii) évaluation des redevances d'eau brute; et (iii) établissement d'une méthodologie d'évaluation du coût de l'eau brute. Cette étude a montré que les recettes potentielles des redevances de prélèvement au taux actuel fixé, ne permettent pas d'équilibrer les charges relatives aux nombreuses missions confiées aux agences de bassin. De même, l'étude a montré que les recettes potentielles des redevances de déversement sont sans aucune commune mesure avec les besoins en investissement pour la dépollution. Ces résultats confirment la nécessité d'une intervention de l'Etat pour la prise en charge de certaines missions confiées par la loi sur l'eau aux agences de bassin. Plan National de Protection de la Qualité des Ressources en Eau : Cette étude comprend 4 missions : (i) diagnostic de la qualité des ressources en eau, (ii) évaluation des flux de pollution et de leur impact sur la qualité des ressources en eau, (iii) élaboration du plan national de protection de la qualité des ressources en eau et (iv) élaboration du plan de protection de la qualité de l'eau dans la région Oum-er-Rbia. Le modèle informatique développé dans cette étude pour l'ensemble des bassins et affiné pour le bassin de l'Oum-er-Rbia, constitue un outil très utile pour l'aide à la décision pour l'optimisation des plans d'action de lutte contre la pollution. Ce modèle a été complété par un autre modèle financier permettant de calculer les redevances d'assainissement et de déversement dans le bassin de l'Oum-er-Rbia. Plan National de Lutte contre les Inondations : Cette étude comprend 3 missions: (i) typologie des inondations, étude des sites vulnérables et définition des mesures de prévention et des priorités d'aménagement, (ii) étude du cadre institutionnel et (iii) établissement d'un plan d'action. Cette importante étude a abouti à la formulation d'orientations et d'un plan d'action pour la prévention et la lutte contre les inondations. Ce plan comporte des actions structurelles de construction d'ouvrages de protection et de mesures non structurelles, principalement d'ordre juridique et institutionnel, pour la prévention. Le Gouvernement a déjà commencé la mise en oeuvre de ce plan d'action. Ainsi, le MATEE, en partenariat avec le Ministère de l'Intérieur, a lancé la construction de nombreux ouvrages de protection des sites les plus vulnérables et les agences de bassin ont lancé des études détaillées des sites à risque. Renforcement de la DGH : Les actions réalisées dans ce cadre concernent la fourniture d'assistance technique et la formation du personnel (convention passée avec la FAO) et l'acquisition des équipements informatiques. La réalisation du plan national de l'eau, de l'étude de tarification de l'eau brute, du plan national de protection de la qualité de l'eau et du plan directeur de protection contre les inondations, constitueront des outils méthodologiques précieux qui permettront à l'Administration d'oeuvrer plus efficacement dans le secteur de l'eau. b- Appui à la mise en place de l'Agence de Bassin Hydraulique de l'Oum Er-Rbia : exécuté par la DGH et l'ADB et comprenant notamment : la mise en place du système d'information de gestion et d'organisation comptable; l'équipement du laboratoire d'analyses de l'eau; l'installation d'un réseau automatique de mesures hydrologiques ; et l'exécution d'un plan de communication. Cette composante comporte deux sous composantes : · la mise en place d'un système de gestion en temps réel des ressources en eau dans le bassin de l'Oum Er Rbia à travers l'installation et l'équipement des stations de mesure et de transmission automatique des données hydrologiques, · la mise en place de l'Agence de Bassin Hydraulique de l'Oum Er-Rbia. Cette sous composante comprend notamment : - 32 - - la mise en place d'un système d'information et de gestion ; - la conduite d'actions de communication et de sensibilisation du public ; - l'acquisition des équipements pour le laboratoire de qualité de l'eau de l'agence, - l'acquisition des stations météorologiques automatiques. Les opérations réalisées dans le cadre de cette composante concernent (i) l'équipement du laboratoire d'analyse de la qualité de l'eau de l'Agence (ii) la mise en place son système d'information de gestion (iii) la sensibilisation du public du rôle de l'Agence (vi) l'acquisition et l'installation des équipements de télémesure hydrologique (v) l'installation d'un réseau de 12 stations météorologiques automatiques. Etude et Assistance Technique pour la Mise en Place du Système de Télémesure Hydrologique (TMH) dans les bassins Oum-er-Rbia et Nfis : Cette sous-composante avait pour objet de concevoir le système de TMH, de préparer les termes de référence pour l'acquisition des équipements et d'accompagner la DGH pour le choix, l'installation et l'exploitation de ces équipements. Cependant la consistance du système de télémesure ayant été revue par la DGH, en raison des coûts de fonctionnement et d'exploitation élevés du système envisagé au départ, notamment la composante transmission, la DGH a décidé en accord avec la Banque d'annuler cette composante et de la remplacer par une autre composante qui consiste en l'achat d'équipement variés tels que : des capteurs de niveau d'eau, des pluviomètres et des unités mobiles pour le renforcement des mesures des ressources en eau au niveau national. Stations Météorologiques (DMN) : Cette composante concernait initialement l'équipement de 12 sites dans le bassin de l'Oum er Rbia avec des stations automatiques avec équipement de transmission des données, l'installation d'un système de concentration national et régional avec logiciels d'application et d'un serveur central avec logiciels, ainsi que la formation du personnel et l'assistance technique. c- Appui à la valorisation de l'eau d'irrigation : exécuté par l'AGR et les ORMVA des Doukkala, du Souss-Massa et du Tadla, et comprenant : des essais d'irrigation sur le terrain ; la mise en place du suivi environnemental de l'irrigation ; et une étude de l'irrigation privée moderne. Ainsi, cette composante a pour objectif le soutien d'un programme de recherche appliquée sur la conservation de l'eau dans l'irrigation, dans les régions de l'Oum Er Rbia et du Souss-Massa. Ce programme comporte : · L'acquisition des équipements pour réaliser les essais de démonstration et pour renforcer les laboratoires ; · l'étude des difficultés de l'irrigation moderne privée en vue d'identifier les besoins prioritaires dans la recherche agricole et en matière d'amélioration des technologies de l'irrigation ; · la mise en place du suivi environnemental de l'irrigation Les activités relatives à cette composante sont réparties en quatre sous composantes : (a) l'amélioration de l'efficience de l'irrigation; (b) le suivi de l'impact environnemental de l'irrigation; (c) l'étude du secteur de l'irrigation moderne privée; et (d) le renforcement des moyens du SEEN. L'amélioration de l'efficience de l'irrigation: Celle-ci comprenait une série d'actions de renforcement des moyens des ORMVA, de recherches appliquées en station d'expérimentation, de démonstration et de vulgarisation chez les agriculteurs et de formation et voyages d'étude au profit des cadres et techniciens des - 33 - ORMVAs et des agriculteurs. Ces actions, localisées dans les trois périmètres irrigués du Tadla, des Doukkala et du Souss-Massa, ont été conduites par les ORMVA respectifs sous la coordination et l'assistance du SEEN. Les résultats de cette sous-composante sont satisfaisants: (i) les moyens des unités concernés des trois ORMVA, notamment les laboratoires eau-sol ont été renforcés en matériel technique et scientifique et consommables; (ii) les essais de démonstration en stations et chez les agriculteurs (besoins en eau des cultures, conversion à l'irrigation localisée ; technologies améliorées de l'irrigation de surface et de l'irrigation par aspersion ) soulèvent un intérêt croissant de ces derniers. Des résultats intéressants concernant l'économie d'eau, l'amélioration du rendement et de la qualité des produits, mais aussi dans le cas de l'irrigation par aspersion un meilleur accès à la parcelle et une diminution des litiges ont été démontrés et un nombre croissant d'agriculteurs adopte la technologie présentée. On estime que ces techniques améliorés ont déjà été appliquées sur environ 5.500 ha dans les trois ORMVA; (iii) les voyages d'étude organisés au profit des agriculteurs dans d'autres grandes régions du Maroc ont également encouragé l'adoption des techniques d'irrigation améliorées; et (iv) six entreprises privées (surfaçage/nivellement) au Tadla et 7 associations d'irriguants au Doukkala ont été conventionnées. A ce jour environ 4.000 ha ont bénéficié de nivellement ou de surfaçage. Le suivi de l'impact environnemental de l'irrigation : Les trois études prévues dans le cadre de la sous composante sont achevées. Il s'agit: a) des deux études lancées par le SEEN pour dresser le plan de suivi de la qualité des eaux et des sols dans les périmètre du Tadla et des Doukkala; et b) de l'étude similaire conduite par l'ORMVA des Doukkala pour le Haut Service. Le suivi continu de la qualité des eaux et des sols est actuellement assuré par les 2 ORMVA. Etude du secteur de l'irrigation moderne privée : Cette étude composée de 4 missions est exécutée par l'AGR par l'intermédiaire du SEG pour estimer l'importance, la configuration, la performance et les problèmes du secteur. La dernière phase de cette étude est en cours de finalisation. Renforcement des moyens du SEEN : Les laboratoires du SEEN (laboratoire eau-sol et laboratoire d'essais du matériel d'irrigation et de drainage) ont été équipés de matériel technique et scientifique; une partie du réseau de stations météorologiques a été réhabilité; et du matériel informatique a été acquis dans le cadre du projet. L'impact de cette composante, dont plus de 90% concerne le renforcement les laboratoires d'essais, s'annonce prometteur sachant que deux arrêtés concernant les conditions d'octroi de subventions pour l'irrigation de complément et l'irrigation localisée, publiés en janvier 2002, prévoient la nécessité de joindre aux dossiers de demande de subventions, les bulletins d'essais des performances hydrauliques du matériel utilisé par le SEEN. Depuis janvier 2002, 400 essais hydrauliques et 13.000 analyses ont été réalisées par le SEEN. d- Appui à la lutte contre les maladies hydriques : exécuté par la DELM dans le bassin de l'Oum-er-Rbia et comprenant notamment : le renforcement des moyens de la DELM et l'intensification des mesures préventives et curatives contre la malaria, bilharziose, typhoïde et dysenterie. La composante a pour objectif le soutien du programme du Ministère de la Santé visant à contrôler les maladies hydriques dans le bassin de l'Oum Er Rbia comprenant la construction de laboratoires, la fourniture des équipements et la formation. Cette composante soutient le programme de surveillance et de contrôle des maladies hydriques de la Direction de l'Epidémiologie et de la Lutte contre les Maladies (DELM) du Ministère de la Santé dans le bassin de l'Oum Er Rbia. Elle comprend les actions suivantes: (a) la construction et l'équipement de deux laboratoires régionaux de diagnostic épidémiologique et d'hygiène du milieu et l'équipement de cinq laboratoires provinciaux existants; (b) le renforcement des moyens de contrôle des eaux de boisson et de lutte contre les vecteurs de maladies ; (c) l'information, l'éducation et la sensibilisation sur les pratiques - 34 - d'hygiène et de prévention, particulièrement en milieu rural et (d) la formation du personnel de terrain. e- Appui aux investissements physiques : exécuté par la DGH, comprenant les 3 opérations prioritaires : étude de la nappe profonde des Triffa, réalimentation de la nappe du Souss et réhabilitation du barrage de Nakhla. Cette composante comprend les opérations suivantes : · la réhabilitation du barrage de Nakhla ; · l'étude des aquifères, comprenant notamment la réalisation des forages de reconnaissance, l'étude de l'aquifère des Triffa et l'étude de l'aménagement pour la recharge de la nappe du Souss. Travaux de Réhabilitation du Barrage de Nakhla : Les travaux de réhabilitation définis en 1999 comprenaient deux lots: (i) Lot 1 : Construction d'un masque étanche sur la face amont de la digue en terre, dans le but d'en renforcer l'étanchéité; et (ii) Lot 2 : Traitement par injections de la fondation de l'ouvrage. La DGH et le Consultant confirment que l'hypothèse de départ attribuant, en grande partie, les fuites d'eau à l'absence de masque amont du barrage n'est pas tout à fait exacte et qu'il faudrait orienter tous les travaux d'étanchéité vers la fondation du barrage et non vers le masque, ce qui a été fait et les travaux du Lot 2 sont actuellement terminés, tandis que ceux du Lot 1 ont été annulés. Vu l'importance de ces hypothèses, un expert a été recruté pour revoir les résultats. Ces principales conclusions et recommandations ont été les suivantes: a) la procédure d'injection réalisée a permis d'atteindre une meilleure étanchéité des fondations gauche et droite du barrage ; b) la continuation du traitement des fondations du barrage dans la partie la plus profonde est nécessaire; c) l'installation de dispositifs d'auscultation pour le suivi des écoulements d'eau est à entreprendre ; et d) le traitement du masque amont devrait être réalisé. Etudes des Nappes Profondes des Triffa et de Moulouya : L'étude géophysique avait pour objectif d'orienter l'exécution des travaux de forage dans la nappe profonde des Triffa. Elle comprenait 3 missions: (i) synthèse des données existantes; (ii) réalisation de 60 km de profils sismiques et (iii) interprétation et élaboration du rapport final. Cette étude est maintenant terminée. Les travaux du premier forage profond sont également achevés. Au vu des résultats infructueux de ce premier forage, la DGH a décidé de ne pas réaliser de nouveaux forages profonds et, à la place et avec l'accord de la Banque, a lancé 3 opérations de forages de reconnaissance et d'exploitation dans différentes provinces du bassin de la Moulouya et une étude relatif à la modélisation de la Nappe de Triffa. Dispositifs de la Recharge Artificielle de la Nappe du Souss : Cette étude a pour objet de réaliser les études de conception (mission I), d'Avant Projet Définitif (mission II) et d'évaluation économique et environnementale (mission III) des dispositifs de recharge de la nappe du Souss. Les options d'aménagements ont été arrêtées dans le cadre de la mission III de cette étude. Les travaux topographiques nécessaires à l'élaboration des plans d'exécution des aménagements ont aussi été achevés. Les travaux d'aménagements proprement dits ont été scindés en deux lots : a) Lot 1 concerne la construction d'un nouveau seuil et b) Lot 2 concerne la réhabilitation de 5 seuils. - 35 - - 36 -