Open AccessMorocco’s agricultural system response to the dual shock of the COVID-19 crisis and drought: learnings and recommendations for the new normal
Author(s) -
Youssef Brouziyne
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
food research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.218
H-Index - 7
ISSN - 2550-2166
DOI - 10.26656/fr.2017.5(3).073
Subject(s) - agriculture , resilience (materials science) , supply chain , shock (circulatory) , business , psychological resilience , food security , covid-19 , dual (grammatical number) , natural resource economics , economics , geography , marketing , medicine , psychology , physics , disease , archaeology , pathology , infectious disease (medical specialty) , psychotherapist , thermodynamics , art , literature
As the world looks forward to the new normal after the COVID-19 pandemic, reshapingthe agricultural sector and food system is a high priority of most governments. This task isstrategic for Morocco due to the vital socioeconomic role of this sector in the kingdomand because of the dual shocks that hit the sector during the 2019/2020 season. This paperaimed to uncover some of the responses of Morocco’s agricultural sector to the pandemicand the low rainfall, with a focus on potential opportunities for improvement. Under theincreasing recurrence of crises and shocks, systems and organisations are becomingobligated to develop resilience. The Moroccan agricultural system is expected to becomemore resilient to climate change-induced extremes and the volatility of global foodproduct markets while decreasing its dependence on the international agro-inputs supplychain. Moreover, Morocco’s agricultural system should learn to evolve under uncertainty.To succeed in this task, a high level of agility is required across all components of itsvalue chain. Specific leadership and mechanisms should be set up to increase the system'sagility in responding to the unpredictable climate and consumer habits; research anddevelopment can play an important role in this. Digitalisation can also be a driver of bothresilience and agility if adopted across the whole value chain.