Addressing Climate Change and Building Resilience in the Draa-Tafilalet Region

Climate change threatens ecosystems in Morocco's Draa-Tafilalet region. Covering 57,600 km2 in southeast Morocco, this arid landscape encompasses diverse but vulnerable habitats protected as the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve of Southern Moroccan Oases (ReBOSUM). Ecosystems like oases, steppe and desert provide the region with goods and ecosystem services sustaining local livelihoods. However, over the past 30 years climate change coupled with overexploitation have degraded these fragile ecosystems. Observational evidence shows rising temperatures, decreasing rainfall and advancing desertification are negatively impacting the region. Key climate-sensitive systems like oases face severe threats to their survival. Assessing climate impacts has become urgent to safeguard ecosystem functions and local livelihoods dependent on them. This study employs ecosystem-based adaptation approaches to evaluate climate change effects on services such as freshwater provisioning that support biodiversity, agriculture, and food security. Focusing on the Draa-Tafilalet region, a quantitative assessment of services and conservation planning aims to enhance ecosystem resilience under climate stresses. Results reveal many services, especially water resources, experience limitations due to declining resilience from climate change. For instance, high sediment loads reduce dam storage capacity exacerbating water scarcity during droughts. Adaptation strategies are needed across ecosystems, particularly agro-ecosystems, to bolster resource management and reduce vulnerabilities. Community-engaged efforts applying agroecology and innovative technologies can empower local adaptation while curbing degradation. Approaches like biogas, organic farming and ecological sanitation represent environmentally-sound solutions to sustain ecosystem services as climate impacts intensify. Coordinated adaptation through integrated vulnerability assessments and ecosystem-based management offers a pathway to climate-resilient development in Draa-Tafilalet's at-risk landscapes.