Amina Elbakri’s research, published in *Discover Sustainability* by the Department of Rural Economy at the National School of Agriculture, sheds light on a critical challenge facing Morocco’s agricultural sector: the unsustainable use of water in vegetable farming. Her study, which focuses on onion and potato farms in the Fes-Meknes region, reveals that these crops are consuming far more water than necessary—a revelation with significant implications for both farmers and the energy sector.
Elbakri’s findings are stark. Onion and potato farms in the region are using water footprints that far exceed the crops’ actual requirements. Irrigation water, or “blue water,” makes up 74% of the total water footprint for onions and 59% for potatoes. Even more concerning is the high grey water footprint for potato production, which stands at 31.87%, indicating significant pollution from fertilizer runoff. “The excessive use of irrigation water and fertilizers is not only draining our limited water resources but also degrading soil quality,” Elbakri notes. “This is a double burden on farmers and the environment.”
The study employs a stochastic frontier approach to assess eco-efficiency, combining economic and environmental performance metrics. The results are telling: onion farms achieve an average eco-efficiency score of 0.62, while potato farms score slightly better at 0.67. This means that, on average, farms could increase their output by 38% for onions and 33% for potatoes without using additional resources or wasting water. “There’s a massive opportunity here for farmers to do more with less,” Elbakri explains. “But it requires better management practices, access to training, and the right incentives.”
The research also highlights the role of socio-economic factors in eco-efficiency. Older farmers tend to have lower eco-efficiency scores, while higher education levels, access to agricultural training, larger farm sizes, and subsidies positively influence performance. Perhaps most critically, the study calculates the shadow price of irrigation water—essentially, what water is *really* worth in economic terms. For onion farms, this value is 2.79 Moroccan dirhams per cubic meter, while for potato farms, it jumps to 9.14 MAD/m³. This stark difference underscores a fundamental misalignment between the true economic value of water and its current pricing, which remains artificially low.
This misalignment has real-world consequences. When water is undervalued, it encourages waste and inefficient allocation—bad news for a country like Morocco, where agriculture guzzles up 85% of the nation’s renewable water supply. The implications for the energy sector are particularly noteworthy. Water and energy are deeply intertwined; pumping, treating, and distributing water requires significant energy inputs. If water is used inefficiently, it drives up energy demand unnecessarily, contributing to higher operational costs and greater carbon emissions. “This isn’t just an agricultural problem,” Elbakri points out. “It’s an energy problem too. Every drop of water wasted is a watt of energy squandered.”
The study suggests that reforming water pricing to reflect its true economic value could be a game-changer. By aligning prices with the shadow values calculated in the research, policymakers could incentivize farmers to adopt more sustainable practices, reducing both water and energy waste. For the energy sector, this could translate into lower operational costs and a smaller carbon footprint. It’s a win-win scenario that aligns economic incentives with environmental sustainability.
Elbakri’s work is a call to action—not just for farmers, but for policymakers, energy providers, and investors. The path forward requires a holistic approach: better education for farmers, smarter subsidies, and pricing policies that reflect the real cost of water. The potential payoff is enormous: more efficient farms, healthier water systems, and a more sustainable energy future. As Elbakri puts it, “We have the tools to fix this. What we need now is the will to use them.”