Urbanization of the peripheral areas of Meknes (Morocco) and the conversion of agricultural land: Case study of the Naiji agricultural cooperative

This paper presents and analyses land use changes in the periurban areas of Meknes, Morocco, focusing on disappearing fertile and productive farmland. Although identified by the Moroccan public policies, the concern for periurban farmland protection is not the government's first priority. It remains behind economic development and housing of low-incomes. In Meknes, where land tenure remains very complex, urban growth is impacting high-quality-soil farmland while the land market is characterised by increasing farmland values and weak public policy regulation. As an example, this paper focuses on the case study of the Naiji cooperative stemming from the land reform and on the land strategies of the farmers.