Souss-Massa Council Approves Budget Surpluses and 417M Dirham Loan for Infrastructure and Water Projects

During its ordinary session in March 2026, held on Monday, the members of the Souss-Massa Regional Council approved an agenda consisting of 41 items. Among them was the allocation of budget surpluses relating to the 2025 and 2026 fiscal years.

The Council members also approved a loan of 417 million dirhams from the FEC (Economic Cooperation Fund), intended for the construction of small dams and hillside reservoirs and for securing drinking water through desalination for the province of Chtouka-Ait Baha.

The Souss-Massa Regional Council held its March 2026 ordinary session this Monday in Inezgane, with a particularly full agenda of 41 items. While the majority of these items concerned multi-sectoral partnership agreements, financial adjustments were the highlight of the session.

The first four items on the agenda were dedicated to managing budget surpluses and financial adjustments to the region’s budget, as well as approving a new line of credit from the FEC (Economic and Commercial Fund).

“We are proposing to allocate a budget of approximately 1 billion dirhams to development projects from the remaining projected surplus of the region for the current fiscal year, the remaining actual surplus from the previous fiscal year, as well as the planned loan,” announced Karim Achengli, president of the Souss-Massa Regional Council.

“Despite sustained efforts to mobilize the financial resources necessary to fund our development program, these remain below our ambitions. They clearly reflect the limited financial resources available to the Regions in relation to the scale of expectations and the multiplicity of needs. However, this will in no way prevent us from continuing to seek innovative financing mechanisms and active partnerships capable of supporting our development program and achieving its objectives,” he added.

Projected Surplus of 476.82 Million MAD in 2026 in Souss-Massa:

Regarding the remaining projected surplus for 2026, the budget presented to elected officials is based on revenues of 890.93 million MAD and operating expenses of 323.91 million MAD. The balance shows a gross surplus of 567.02 million MAD, of which 90.2 million MAD is earmarked for principal debt repayment. The Council has therefore approved the allocation of a net sum of 476.82 million MAD as the remaining unscheduled projected surplus for 2026.

Analysis of the allocation lines indicates that these funds are directed towards financing several basic infrastructure projects and programs. These include, among others, 92 million dirhams for the regional road network, 56 million dirhams for the rural drinking water supply program, and 35 million dirhams for the development of the Drarga dry port.

A new FEC credit of 417 million dirhams

Regarding the financial closing of the previous fiscal year, the remainder of the actual surplus in Souss-Massa for the 2025 fiscal year was approved. Figures as of December 31, 2025, show actual revenues of 866.34 million dirhams. After subtracting total commitments (expenditures of 225.82 million dirhams, the already programmed projected surplus of 524.92 million dirhams in Souss-Massa, and carried-over credits of 29.57 million dirhams), the region shows a net actual surplus of 86.01 million dirhams.

The Souss-Massa Council has chosen to concentrate this remaining amount from 2025 on two projects: a major allocation of 61.71 million dirhams will be directed towards the creation of the Drarga dry port, while the remaining 24.3 million dirhams will be allocated to studies for the construction and rehabilitation of educational establishments.

Internal budget adjustments were high on the agenda of the Regional Council in Souss-Massa, which approved the transfer of financial allocations from one budget line item to another for 2026. This operation involves a targeted allocation of 8 million dirhams. Furthermore, a new loan of 417 million dirhams from the Municipal Equipment Fund (FEC) was approved by the Regional Council members.

This line of credit is linked to the Souss-Massa region’s water security needs. Analysis of the allocation shows that the main portion of this funding, 375 million dirhams (MDH), will be allocated to the large-scale project of constructing small dams and hillside reservoirs. The remaining 42 million dirhams will be used to finance the connection of the Aït-Baha area to the drinking water network via the seawater desalination plant, representing a direct response to the constraints of water stress.

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(Featured image by Luis Tosta via Unsplash)

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First published in LES ECO.ma. A third-party contributor translated and adapted the article from the original. In case of discrepancy, the original will prevail.

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