Taounate

This article is about the city. For the province, see Taounate Province.
Taounate
Arabic: تاونات
Barrage Sahla and Taounate
Barrage Sahla and Taounate
Taounate is located in Morocco
Taounate
Taounate
Location in Morocco
Coordinates: 34°32′9″N 4°38′24″W / 34.53583°N 4.64000°W / 34.53583; -4.64000
Country Morocco
RegionFès-Meknès
ProvinceTaounate Province
Elevation
566 m (1,857 ft)
Population
 (2014)[1]
 • Total37,616
Time zoneUTC+0 (WET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+1 (WEST)

Taounate (Arabic: تاونات) is a town in northern Morocco, and is the capital of Taounate Province. The town had 37,616 inhabitants as of the 2014 Moroccan census.[1]

Geography

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Taounate is located in the southern Rif Mountains, and the river Oued Sra and gorges are nearby. The town is situated on a plateau that overlooks the valley of the Oued Sra, as well as the Gargara gorges.[2]

Infrastructure

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In 2016, it was announced that a highway development plan, estimated to be completed by 2035, will benefit the Taounate area, the highway being called the "Fès-Taounate Axis".[3]

West of Taounate is the Al Wahda Dam on the Ouergha River,[4] which is the largest dam in Morocco and the second largest in Africa.[5]

Economy

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Taounate's economy is led by the agriculture sector, specifically fig farming.[6] In addition to figs, cherries, pears, apples, and olives are also grown. Cattle, cereal production, and timber are important industries.[2] Cannabis is also cultivated in the area.[7]

Culture

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The area surrounding Taounate is generally mountainous, and cereals (mostly wheat) and cattle are intensively raised at lower elevations. Fruits (including figs, olives, cherries, apples, and pears) are grown in the well-watered mountain valleys. Higher elevations are covered with commercially exploited cedars and cork oaks. The area is inhabited mostly by Imazighen (Berbers); the more isolated groups speak only Riff, an Amazigh dialect, and the less isolated groups are generally bilingual, speaking both Riff and Arabic.[2]

Taounate is home to an annual Festival of Figs, organized by the Regional Directorate of Agriculture of Fez-Meknes. The festival includes many varieties of figs.[8] Friday is market day in Taounate.[9]

Union Sportive de Taounate represents Taounate in association football.[10]

Notable people

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  • A market with men and women. Waterjars made from old tyres and their maker. Donkeys, 1997
    A market with men and women. Waterjars made from old tyres and their maker. Donkeys, 1997
  • A market with waterjars, 1997
    A market with waterjars, 1997
  • A white farm seen from above with a typical white washed triangular haystack, 1997.
    A white farm seen from above with a typical white washed triangular haystack, 1997.
  • The "16 November" football stadium, pictured in 2016
    The "16 November" football stadium, pictured in 2016

References

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  1. ^ a b "Population légale d'après les résultats du RGPH 2014 sur le Bulletin officiel N° 6354" (pdf). Haut-Commissariat au Plan (in Arabic). Retrieved 11 July 2015.
  2. ^ a b c "Taounate | Morocco". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  3. ^ "Maroc : Les prochaines autoroutes devraient desservir Taounate, Nador et Kelaat Sraghna". yabiladi.com. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  4. ^ "Lake Al Wahda Morocco". Atlas of Our Changing Environment. Retrieved 17 October 2010.
  5. ^ "Barrage Al Wahda - Taounate : Ville - Maroc Trip, voyage et vacance". www.maroc-trip.com. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  6. ^ "Les investissements de la filière de Figuier à Taounate dépassent 40 MDHs depuis le lancement du Plan Maroc Vert". Medias24 - Site d'information. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  7. ^ 2005 World drug report. United Nations Publications. 2005. p. 237. ISBN 978-92-1-148201-0.
  8. ^ "Taounate: 3e édition du Festival National des Figues". www.agrimaroc.ma. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  9. ^ Daniel Jacobs; Keith Drew (2 April 2013). The Rough Guide to Morocco. Rough Guides. p. 159. ISBN 978-1-4093-3267-1.
  10. ^ "Scandale des matchs truqués: La Fédération de foot secouée". fr.le360.ma. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
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