Morocco wants to solve the problem of plastics in the seas

The Moroccan enclave of Dakhla hosted the 18th edition of the International Congress of the World's Most Beautiful Bays to highlight the bays of the various countries participating in the event. 

Environmental protection was a truly relevant issue at the Congress and Atalayar was able to speak with Guy Rousset, president of the Organising Committee of the 2025 World's Most Beautiful Bays International Congress, which will take place in Canada.

What can we expect from Canada next year? What are you working on? 

We are working, as Morocco is working, on traditional and cultural things.  

The programme will be with the first nation that came to Canada and came to South America. We are working with them on programming to allow the person to discover our culture, which is European and ancestral culture.  

What is your opinion about the Congress in Dakhla, are you satisfied with the work done?  

Yes, we are very satisfied. Nothing is perfect, but it was a pleasant experience of traditional people, traditional dance, traditional culture, traditional food, and the country is amazing, with sun and sea, everything is beautiful.  

What are the conclusions and the work of the Congress? What are the main points for you?  

The main point is that the Moroccan people and the people of Dakhla, of the bay of Dakhla, know that there is a problem with plastics in the seas, which we see every day, but they want to solve it, and what we did to clean a beach with children, young school children, is for us a good example of what Morocco should do.  

Morocco is doing it, and we are immensely proud of that. 

This kind of association is especially useful for people to know what the reality is and what is the work we must do to preserve it. 

Yes, the association was born in 1979 based on how to reconcile tourism and biodiversity and preserve all this biodiversity with tourism. 

So really the way the Moroccan people take seriously the problem they have with plastics is for us a particularly effective way and they are on a particularly effective way for that.  

What do you say to the Spanish people or the Spanish administration? Because we have many kilometres along the coast, but only two bays in the association, what do you offer to invite more Spanish bays to the association? 

Well, you know that the neighbouring country France has nine bays in our association, so it is just a question of believing that every bay and every single person in the bays has an important impact on ecotourism. So, we help people to reach goals together, to exchange experiences, scientific experiences, cultural experiences, experiences on how to clean, how to be a better person, how to preserve the Earth, which is in a big problem now. 

It is like a way of life with the environment and climate change. 

Yes, it's a way of life, and as soon as we take the problem with the children, showing them the problem, showing them how to solve the problem, asking them what they think about the problem, and that will be for any member who wants to belong to our association, the way we think.  

It is an enjoyable experience that the association, biodiversity, and climate issues are over the political issues, because you know here the Sahara are in conflict, but the association is over the political issues. 

Yes, yes, clearly, we are a non-political partnership, we have a bay of Israel, and we have bays of Muslim countries, and they work together now.  

The bay of Eilat did not come to this Congress because there is a war, an incredibly sad war, and so they did not come, but we are about politics, and we try to have a way to be aware of the world, of what is the real danger for humanity.  

Finally, what can you tell the Spanish administration, local or regional, to join the association?  

Believe in your coast, you have a beautiful country with beautiful bays; believe in it, believe in the people who live there, and come to our association to exchange.  

We are here to exchange, to be here every year, to meet each other every year, to know how to solve this problem, one year over the other, and to exchange scientific people, tourists, and scientists, from universities, from technical companies.