Tetouan: regional council backs UNESCO-linked ocean science centre with MAD 2.5m

The Regional Council of Tanger-Tétouan-Al Hoceïma has approved a partnership agreement with Abdelmalek Essaâdi University to set up and run a regional ocean science centre in Tetouan, committing MAD 2.5 million over five years.

Under the deal, the council will provide 500,000 dirhams a year for five years. The money is earmarked for training activities, field logistics and the travel of trainers and experts.

A UNESCO-linked training hub

The project, known as the “Regional Training Centre in Morocco” (RTC OTGA Maroc), is affiliated with the Ocean Teacher Global Academy (OTGA). The academy operates under the umbrella of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC).

The university will host the centre and supply the premises and equipment it needs. It will also handle the academic and scientific coordination of its programmes.

The agreement sets the framework for cooperation between the two partners, with the aim of building advanced training at both regional and international level. It covers capacity-building in marine and ocean sciences, marine observation and data management, integrated coastal zone management and the promotion of the blue economy.

The partners also intend the centre to contribute to the goals of the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030).

Five-year plan, four priorities

The centre’s work will follow a five-year plan covering 2027 to 2031. It rests on four pillars: organising the regional training offer, strengthening applied skills, linking scientific research with decision-making, and developing international cooperation and partnerships.

Courses will be delivered in person or online. They target researchers, teachers and doctoral students, as well as professionals, technicians and institutional players involved in public policy and marine ecosystems.

The project is designed to serve the southern Mediterranean and Africa’s Atlantic seaboard, and to build cooperation between countries in North Africa, West Africa and Europe. Its network is expected eventually to take in more than 150 universities and nearly 50 specialised research institutes and centres.

The partnership also seeks to strengthen the standing of the Tanger-Tétouan-Al Hoceïma region, which sits where the Atlantic meets the Mediterranean, as a reference hub for marine sciences and sustainable development.