The aim of the annual day, which falls on October 15, is to unite “the world’s bloggers in posting about the same issue on the same day with the aim of sparking discussion around an issue of global importance.”

The Blogma, as the Moroccan blogosphere is known, sprang into action with leading bloggers taking the podium to state their ideas on climate change and the environment.

Taha Balafrej [Fr], who writes about Moroccan environmental issues on Vues Du Maroc applauds the fact that a public institute such as the Moroccan Royal Institute for Strategic Studies is organizing an international conference about the effects of climate change on Morocco. He says:

C’est une initiative louable à plusieurs titres. D’abord parce que, de nos jours, il est inconcevable de prétendre parler d’avenir, de prospective, ou de stratégies des pouvoirs publics, sans affronter la problématique du climat. Et ensuite parce que l’initiative s’inscrit dans le cadre d’une réflexion soutenue visant à « suggérer des solutions adaptées aux défis que doit relever le pays en matière de sécurité hydraulique, alimentaire, sanitaire et environnementale ».

This is a praiseworthy initiative in several ways. First, because today it is inconceivable to argue about the future, forecasting, or strategies of government, without addressing the climate issue. And second because the initiative is part of a sustained reflection to “suggest solutions to challenges facing the country's water security, food, health and environment”.

In an other blog post, Balafrej warns about the danger of the authorities' lack of attention on climate change. He writes:

Le Maroc se trouve dans une région vulnérable aux effets néfastes du changement climatique. Bien que peu émetteur de Gaz à effet de serre, le Maroc est menacé dans son avancement vers le développement et le bien être de ses populations. Il doit par conséquent rester attentif à l’évolution de cette question au niveau mondial, tout en étant actif dans le processus de négociation mené sous l’égide de l’ONU …

Morocco lies in a region vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change. Although low in its greenhouse gas emissions, Morocco is threatened in its progress towards development and welfare of its people. It must therefore be attentive to the evolution of this issue globally, while active in the negotiation process conducted under the auspices of the UN …

Bloggers who have participated in Blog Action Day addressed mainly the issues of energy and water supply.

Le blog d'Annouss [Fr] praises for more cooperation and a transfer of technology from developed countries to developing countries like Morocco. Annouss writes:

One of the big issues for Morocco is its dependance on foreign oil for energy. Moroccan government should address this issue with great ambition in order to reduce our dependance on foreign oil and take all advantage from our sunny lands and windy coasts. In 2008 renewable energy met 24% of Spain’s electricity demand … Why not develop clean energy policy in Morocco at a very large scale in cooperation with this european country. The advanced status that Morocco got with the European Union sould not be just a question of trade, immigration and fishing, it should also be a question of technology transfer and multilateral cooperation.

Indeed, this cooperation could see light as Omar El-Hyani [Fr] points out on his blog. In his contribution to Blog Action Day, Omar urges Moroccan authorities not to miss the green revolution - like it did with the industrial revolution and the numeric revolution. He states:

Le déclenchement pourrait probablement venir du projet Desertec qui a pour ambition d’investir 400 milliards d’euros dans la production d’énergie solaire à partir des déserts d’Afrique du Nord et d’Arabie, pour l’acheminer ensuite en Europe. Le projet est pour l’instant en cours d’étude, mais s’il viendrait à se concrétiser, ce serait un véritable tournant dans la production énergétique mondiale, jusque là très dépendante des énergies fossiles. Au Maroc, ce projet pourrait transformer la structure énergétique du pays. D’importateur d’énergie à 98% de ses besoins, le Maroc pourrait alors se transformer en exportateur.

The outbreak could probably come from Desertec project which aims to invest 400 billion euros in solar energy production from the deserts of North Africa and Arabia, for onward delivery to Europe. The project is currently under study, but should it see light, it would be a turning point in world energy production, until now heavily dependent on fossil fuels. In Morocco, this project could transform the country's energy structure. Importing energy to 98% of its needs, then Morocco could become exporters.

The second issue of water supply was addressed by Ibn Kafka [Fr], among others. The blogger focuses on the dependance of the Moroccan economy to agriculture and its need for water supply. Ibn Kafka writes:

L’enjeu pour le Maroc n’est pas seulement celui de la survie de son agriculture, mais également de son économie, tant l’agriculture – les agrumes plutôt – joue un rôle vital dans son commerce extérieur et ses rentrées de devises … De fait, le Maroc, aussi aride soit-il, exporte de l’eau: agrumes et tourisme, voilà les principaux consommateurs d’eau au Maroc. Le Maroc vend son eau contre des rentrées en devises, mais que fera-t-il quand son aridité sera telle qu’il ne pourra plus ni exporter des agrumes ni promettre piscines et golfs aux 10 millions de touristes ?

The challenge for Morocco is not only the survival of its agriculture, but also its economy, as agriculture - citrus rather - plays a vital role in external trade and foreign exchange … Indeed, Morocco, as arid as it is, exports of water: citrus and tourism are the main consumers of water in Morocco. The Morocco sells its water for foreign exchange earnings, but what will happen when its aridity is such that it can not export more citrus or promise pools and golf courses to the seeked 10 million tourists ?

The same concern was raised by Hisham on the Mirror Blog where he gave examples from his last visit to Morocco of the newest planned touristic projects, such as resorts and golf courses, that consume large quantities of water. Hisham wonders:

But the haunting question remains for developing countries like ours, on how we can hope for economic progress without damaging the environment or impacting on climate. It appears that the whole country took a pass on sustainability, obsessed as it is by economic growth, at any cost …
In the meanwhile, the sight of the Hawzi’ya forest being literally uprooted, left an enduring pain in my heart. No longer will I enjoy the reseeding scents of wild flowers, or the shades of an unacquired tree in a wild field, only a couple of miles north of home. Or maybe should I just resign to an inexorable reality?

Let's hope this will not be the case.

PS: For more information about climate change and its effects on Morocco, see Ibn Kafka's blog where he gives numerous references, documents and links.

Even before Obama's inauguration, and well before he decided which Middle Eastern or North African country he would choose to deliver his so called foreign policy speech in, some Moroccan-Americans lobbied for President Obama to come to Rabat. Some others suggested Casablanca. A website, President Obama to Speak in Morocco, was even set up for that purpose:

[We invite] President Obama to make Morocco the home for his first foreign policy speech abroad.
Morocco is the ideal country to launch a message of peace to the Muslim world.
A peace loving country with a respected voice in the region, Morocco is a long time friend of the United States and would be proud to host President Barack Obama in this historical event.

Eventually, and to the big disappointment of many Moroccan Obama enthusiasts, the American President did not speak in Morocco but preferred - logically, some would argue - Cairo, Egypt.

Great and important speech of Obama in Cairo.

Citoyen Hmida also wrote:

(…)ce discours tant attendu n’est en partie qu’un tissu de lieux communs sur la civilisation arabo-musulmane et sur les positions américaines contre « l’extrémisme violent ».

This long awaited speech has been, in part, a string of platitudes about the Islamic-Arabic civilization and about the American condemnations of “violent extremism.”

Abdoukili reacts in a similar manner. He wrote:

Readership
According to the Moroccan National Telecom Agency ANRT, there are more than 800,000 Moroccans connected directly to the Internet. This number has been growing steadily due to the lower costs of computers and internet connections. Indeed, the community of internet users is estimated up to 4,000,000 people because of the numerous cyber cafés in the country.

Bloggers
There were not that many bloggers just a few years ago. Today, their number is estimated at about 30,000 to 40,000 bloggers according to Moroccan blogger Larbi. All topics are covered from politics to arts, to daily life and fashion, music and sports.

The Moroccan blogosphere also has its own name - the Blogoma. According to Le magazine des blogs et du web au Maroc:

a contraction de blogosphère marocaine. Le terme a été avancé pour la première fois en 2004, pour faire allusion à la naissante communauté de bloggeurs au Maroc.
La blogosphére marocaine est l'une des communautés les plus évolutives dans la région du Maghreb et a pu à plusieurs reprises afficher des positions fermes vis à vis de l'actualité nationale et internationale. Les bloggeurs marocains se réunissent réguliérement sous forme de blog meeting et blog days.

It's a contraction between Blogosphere and Marocaine (Moroccan). This term has been introduced for the first time in 2004 to refer to the birth of bloggers community in Morocco.
The Moroccan blogosphere is one of the most evolving communities in the Maghreb region. It has shown firm and steady positions towards national and international current affairs. Moroccan bloggers meet regularly through blog meetings and blog days.

The aggregator Berberus, attempted a study about Maghrebi blogs with Google Page Ranks (PR) superior than PR = 4. The study, which was made last January and is available here, shows a good presence of Moroccan blogs. Among the top ranked blogs, it names are:

l’excellent blog du journaliste Algérien Allaoua Hadji au côté de Laila Lalami et des deux blogs tunisiens (censurés dans leurs pays) Nawaat.org et ReveilTunisien.org. Le blog de Lameen Souag ayant hélas perdu un point.

the excellent blog of Algerian journalist Allaoua Hadji next to Laila Lalami[a Moroccan author] and the two censored Tunisian blogs Nawaat.org and ReveilTunisien.org. The blog of [Algerian linguist] Lameen Souag has lost one rank.

Profile
As mentioned earlier, many topics are covered by the Blogoma. Its bloggers are of varied profiles too. You can read blogs written by bloggers of various ages. Citoyen Hmida, for example, is run by a retired bank employee; and Adamito by a young college student (high school student at the time he started it). This blogger has also started an innovative and collaborative education platform called 9rayti.com. The most known blog if not the most famous is undoubtedly Larbi, by a young consultant residing in France. He analyses actual news from  Morocco and France and offers his opinion with much humor.

Many languages are used in the Moroccan blogs. If French was the most significant one used, there are now more blogs written in Arabic and in English. Indeed, some blogs are capitalizing on the lack of Moroccan Arabic-speaking blogs and have declared that their purpose is to promote the use of Arabic while blogging. For example, the blog named Bla faransiyya, Without French, goes even further and explains:

Morocco's English-speaking blogs are growing too. Eatbees is one of the blogs writing regularly on Morocco while Al Miraat, which I discovered for the first time through a tasty post about Couscous, Tagine and Democracy, are bothe written in English. A recent project launched by some bloggers started the Maghreb politics Review which:

is a multi-author weblog about the politics of North Africa in an international relations context … The idea here is to shed brighter and broader light onto North Africa in English-speaking quarters, where the region is too often forgotten in conversation about the Muslim and Arab worlds, Mediterranean and broader Middle East. While the Maghreb figures more frequently into Francophone conversation, where there is much of value to be found, MPR hopes to serve to raise the quality of the discourse on and analysis of the region in English.

Impacts
The Blogoma is rich. It's a community which is growing rapidly and which has a wide range of profiles. But does it have any impact on Moroccans ? It is hard to say in a country where illiteracy is still high. Citizen media in general is not well developed, not as much as mainstream media such as television and newspapers. It had its moments of glory though when a video shooter who called himself, The hunter from Targuist, videotaped policemen getting bribed by drivers and truck drivers. The videos are available on YouTube here and here. Thanks to this video, six policemen were fired from their jobs.

For the moment, the Blogoma is more like an intimate journal. Citoyen Hmida says:

“On y réagit plus qu’on y réfléchit”

And a majority of bloggers seem to agree that the Blogoma needs some time to mature. Tarik Essaâdi, author of “E-Citizen” told the magazine Tel Quel:

La blogoma se porte bien en nombre, mais souffre d’une crise d’identité. On ne sait pas bien ce qu’on veut.

He also stated to the same magazine that the Blogoma needs more commitment as it's the case in Algeria and Tunisia. This is a statement which may have to be revised because of the mobilization shown by the Blogoma during latest cases of Fouad Mourtada, Erraji and the Barça fan.

Meanwhile, the Blogoma's journey continues.