Morocco Faces Cemetery Space Crisis as Minister Addresses Growing Demand

According to the official, the country needs about a hundred hectares annually for its cemeteries, with Casablanca at the top of the list, requiring between 6 and 7 hectares alone. The minister also reported a major challenge: the lack of available waqf land, while recalling that the management of these spaces is not directly within the purview of his department.

The question was raised by Ahmed Brija, a deputy from the Authenticity and Modernity party and deputy mayor of Casablanca, who described the state of the Al Ghofrane cemetery as "catastrophic." Brija insisted that the city, faced with the death of about 70 people per day, is limited in its ability to acquire or mobilize real estate assets to address this emergency.

For Toufiq, his ministry intervenes mainly when the cemeteries are no longer active for new burials. However, he acknowledged that although the cemeteries of Casablanca are still operational, an exceptional contribution of 400 hectares has been made in recent years. This situation does not only concern the city of Casablanca, as other deputies have also expressed their concerns about the deterioration of cemeteries in various cities in the country.