Argument

Argument. By Dr. Elouali Aailal: Founder and President of the International Congress on Desert Economy - Dakhla.

Gradually we recognize the incredible benefits of inter-African collaboration (and the enormous cost of the lack of inter-African cooperation) both for Africa itself and for the world.

Thanks to multilateral African and international cooperation, deserts and arid lands across the globe, especially in Africa (The Sahara and the Sahel), with their vast and rich natural maritime seaboards and coastlines , are an open workshop and a scene of substantial and Trans-Saharan megaprojects and infrastructures: The DESERTEC Project (Clean and renewable energy), the Great Green Wall for the Sahara and the Sahel Initiative (Greening the Sahara and combating the desertification),   the Trans Africa Pipeline Project (Water),  the "Power Africa " Initiative, the "Desert to Power" Initiative...Such promising Megaprojects and Initiatives, if fully executed, will undoubtedly contribute to rebirthing Africa into holding its deserved high stature, and will play a pivotal role in keeping up with sustainable development and in ensuring African food security, even more, they will provide abundance in the production for export.

The Possible Africa, where there are all ingredients: Diversity and Younger population, richness in natural resources, unique geographical configuration and morphology: Savannah, forests, mountains, lakes, vast coasts, deserts and the Great Sahara Desert.

The Sahara Desert, instead of being underexploited,  it could be an exclusive competitive advantage and the mythical and memorable brand image for Africa, and it may be the ideal place to boot a strong and long term inter-African and international cooperation in the service of humankind.

The targeted sustainable development in arid lands, just like anywhere else, is governed by an environmental transformation that will fundamentally change our lifestyle, as sustainability is its corn stone.  Concepts like the green economy or circular economy, the blue or ocean economy, and ecotourism (desert tourism) are all plainly supposed to be renewable energy dependant. Thus, the environmental impact of any human activity, such as, travel and tourism industry, land and maritime transport, shipping and logistics, agricultural and fishing... is a major criterion that will tag the range of receptivity and continuity of these economic activities, in the light of an increasingly environmentally-friendly legal arsenal, with a focus on green finance and cleantech.

As a matter of fact, economic development worldwide is entirely dependent on the interactions between energy and economy systems, where our dependence on clean and renewable energy becomes more and more confirmed. Energy Economics could be defined as a branch of economic studies devoted to quantitatively and qualitatively deciphering our well-being and prosperity in their interaction with energy resources.

According to the International Renewable Energy Agency, by 2050,  the overall total investment in the energy system would need to reach USD 110 trillion (around 2% of average annual GDP over this period),  the level of extra investments required to set the world on a more climate-friendly path above current plans and policies, is USD 15 trillion. The share of renewables in the world's total final energy consumption has to increase six times faster to match up to agreed climate goals, precisely, the seventh Sustainable Development Goal, which states for ensuring that everyone will be able to have access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy. For that, international financial flows to developing countries, in support of clean and renewable energy, reached USD 18.6 billion in 2016, almost doubling from USD 9.9 billion in 2010. This trend is likely to increase due to the promising opportunities offered by a steady decline in renewable energy production costs, leading to lower prices.

So far, in some countries, oceans and seas still the primary sources of conventional energy (oil, gas), despite their richness in marine renewable energies (offshore energy): traditional marine renewable energies (ocean wind energy and ocean solar energy), wave energy and tidal energy, as specific forms of marine (ocean) power.  Also, knowing that ocean-based renewable energy has not yet achieved the economies of scale necessary for significant cost reductions, but, as oceans and seas cover more than 70 % of the Earth’s surface, it's not surprising that a large share of future energy production will probably come from ocean-based renewable energy. To show the potential energy glut, published studies have shown that the ocean wind energy potential is so significant and large enough that it could, theoretically, be used to propel human civilization.

Morocco took up the challenge of increasing green renewable energy production from total renewable energy to 52 % by 2030, initially set at 42 % by 2020. This specific achievement becomes a reality thanks to the adoption of an ambitious energy strategy, including generating renewable energies in Moroccan deserts: The Solar Complex (Noor) in Ouarzazate, the largest wind farm in Africa located in the coastal desert of the city of Tarfaya, and last but not least, the project to be implemented in the Sahara of the Dakhla region,  aiming to generate renewable and clean energy, from wind, this wind energy will be used in mining the cryptocurrencies based on Blockchain technology, such as the Bitcoin.

 Dr.  Elouali Aailal : President and Coordinator of the International Congress on Desert Economy - Dakhla.  Research Professor at the ENCG of Dakhla.