Administrator Samantha Power at a Press Availability in Al Haouz Province

ADMINISTRATOR SAMANTHA POWER: Hello everyone. It is a great pleasure for me to be here in Morocco, my first trip to Morocco as Administrator of USAID. I'm really grateful for the incredible welcome that I have received from USAID’s team in Morocco, and from all of the Moroccans that I’ve had the chance to meet so far here in this incredibly beautiful, special country. 

The United States and Morocco have a very long and very important partnership with one another. And USAID is very privileged to be a part of that partnership. We have been working in Morocco with the Moroccan people since the 1960s. And one of the things that the United States has done over those years is support efforts to strengthen education here in Morocco, to help the country in recent years adapt to climate change – which of course is a very significant challenge in many countries but particularly here in Morocco with more than 60 percent of the population living in coastal areas. We work to support small businesses, small and medium sized enterprises. 

And just as we do in other parts of the world when a crisis hits, when a disaster hits, we try to be there with our friends on the ground. It has been really moving for me to be here not far from the epicenter of the earthquake that struck here around eight months ago to meet with affected communities here in Aghbalou, which is going to take a long time to recover from something so devastating as an earthquake. We saw the parts of Aghbalou that have been refurbished and rehabilitated. But we also saw the homes that are very, very hard to access because the roads are so narrow. And we recognize that the community here has been incredibly resilient, has banded together, shown great solidarity to ensure that kids get back into school. But we as USAID recognize that we need to be here in the long term as partners with the Moroccan government, that is providing cash support to the families affected, and in USAID’s case, to support wraparound services so that we complement what the Moroccan government is doing for the communities that are recovering.

The program that we saw here has helped refurbish these schools. USAID’s objective is to refurbish at least 60 schools in Morocco that were destroyed or badly damaged in the earthquake. 

But we know that an earthquake doesn't just cause physical damage. It causes deep psychological trauma for people who experience such an event. So the program that we have seen here as well provides psychosocial support, for example, to the children who were affected by the devastating earthquake.

We know, also, that sanitation is extremely important and it is often one of the first things to be destroyed in an earthquake. So we take great pride in seeing the ways in which the sanitation services have been repaired, and how, now that the community has found a way to use wastewater in fact as a form of irrigation here. And so there is a way, in fact, in the wake of an earthquake to build back better, and that is something we are supporting our Moroccan partners in seeking to do.

Right after this, I will be meeting with women from the Amizmiz. I will be meeting right after this with people from the Amizmiz community. They are still recovering from the damage. And I want to just stress the importance of Moroccan local organizations who are doing the work to help communities. 

This is who we have met with here. These are the leaders on the ground who are listening to the communities to learn what the priorities are. And in Amizmiz, we will be hearing again directly from local leaders. For the rest of my time on the ground in Morocco, I am looking forward to sitting down with OCP [Office Chérifien des Phosphates Group], a leading fertilizer company, not just a leader in Morocco, but a global leader. We have had a partnership with OCP since the food crisis struck over the last couple years in sub-Saharan Africa to try to get fertilizer to farmers in need across the continent.

And of course, we will be looking at significant questions about how Morocco accelerates its transition to renewable energy. But also I know something on the mind of so many Moroccans adapts to what can be the devastating effects of climate change. We at USAID, know that Morocco has a very dynamic, burgeoning youth population. So over my few days here on the ground, I look forward to hearing what more the United States and USAID can do to help expand livelihoods and the opportunity for those young people to get access to jobs. 

Thank you so much and I look forward to taking your questions.

QUESTION: What do you think of what has been done so far in terms of the renovation of this place, and when do you think that the objectives of the USAID program might be achieved?

ADMINISTRATOR POWER: Well, I'm very struck by the fact that of the 2.7 million people affected by the earthquake, about 30 percent are kids. So I do think, given the lasting impacts of trauma, and the loss of education, that the emphasis on the education of young people that the community is making here – that they are prioritizing the fates of their kids – I think that's very wise as well, of course, as a very compassionate investment. 

So I'm very impressed with the relative speed with which the school is back up and running. You know, obviously, circumstances where kids have to learn outside or in a tent, which is much more susceptible to bad weather, that is very difficult for kids. I think also, you know, when families are displaced, it can be hard for families to organize to get their kids to school, but the outreach that USAID’s partners here, and the community is doing to those families, to attract them to bring their kids back to school so that their education does not get interrupted, I think that supporting that kind of outreach is also very important. So I'm impressed with what has been done. But I also saw very clearly walking in here, how much destruction there still is. And I know that that is even more the case, as we get closer and closer to the epicenter. 

You know, one of the things that makes this such a beautiful and close knit community is being here in the mountains and the narrow roads and the solidarity that gets built by being a close knit community, but also relatively isolated community – that makes the full repair and rehabilitation more challenging for the community. Some of the roads are very hard to access – if a home gets destroyed, and there's rubble everywhere, figuring out how to lift that rubble, when you can't get a good moving truck, down a narrow road. These are very challenging engineering and logistical questions. 

So I think what is important is to listen to the community and not for me to say when the job is done, but to always be in the mode of hearing what they think the next set of priorities are, and trying to steer USAID’s and other resources in support of what the government is doing.

QUESTION: Also, what do you think of Morocco's commitments when it comes to addressing development challenges?

Well, I think Morocco has exhibited a lot of leadership when it comes, for example, to countering violent extremism, and working with young people to make sure that they get educated, not to be drawn in a direction that would cause them great pain, and the community, great pain. Morocco, is a country from whom we as USAID have a lot to learn, in that regard, as we tried to support programs in other countries where extremism is unfortunately spreading. 

I think that the leadership on combating food insecurity that I mentioned, using its assets, in phosphate and with fertilizer to support farmers who often don't have the access they need to the kind of fertilizer that will help them get bigger yields. 

And the speed with which Morocco is transitioning to renewable energy. You know, I would love to see a situation where other countries where USAID works, more than 45 percent of the electricity was generated by renewables. I was struck last night in Marrakech, as we toured the Medina historical district, at the number of solar panels that I saw, you know, popping up is becoming almost second nature here that if you are seeking to set up new electricity or expand your access to power, first in the renewable direction. So I think those are examples of the kinds of development achievements and progress that we would love to see Morocco serve as a model for other countries. 

We recognize, of course with a big population of young people – we recognize with significant drought, many, many years now, drought, that Morocco also faces development challenges to support the government and the people and also importing best practices, you know, when there are lessons that we can learn from places with job creation as well.