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Meet the Steering Committee: Coalition Civile pour la Montagne, Representative of Major Groups Organizations of the Near East and North Africa

13.06.2023

The Mountain Partnership is guided by an 18-member Steering Committee that represents the diversity of the entire membership and ensures geographic representation. A new Steering Committee is elected approximately every four years. Most recently, elections were held in September 2022 during the sixth Global Meeting of the Mountain Partnership.

In this new series, we are interviewing the new members of the Steering Committee. Today, we are introducing Mohamed Ddich, the Mountain Partnership focal point for Coalition Civile pour la Montagne (Civil Coalition for Mountains) in Morocco, representing the Mountain Partnership's member Major Groups Organizations of the Near East and North Africa. Find out what Mohamed has to say about the Coalition Civile pour la Montagne's projects and his vision for the future of the Mountain Partnership.

What is the Coaliation Civile pour la Montagne, and what is its mission?

My name is Mohamed Ddich. I am the national coordinator of the Coalition Civile pour la Montagne. I am also a human rights activist and educational consultant.

The Coalition was created in 2015 and formalized in 2017. It is a national alliance of 120 associations from the four mountain ranges in Morocco. Our mission is to work and advocate for sustainable development in mountain areas, protecting natural resources and enabling mountain communities to live with dignity, enjoying their full rights as citizens and maintaining their heritage and culture.

Why do mountains matter to you personally and to your culture?

Mountains are a part of my identity. I grew up in a mountain village in the Middle Atlas. That is where I was shaped by the values of my community and family life. It is also where I experienced the hardships of severe weather conditions and the scarcity of means and limited resources.

Yet mountains are valuable assets in terms of the environment, biodiversity, economy, society and culture. In Morocco, mountains are not seen as just physical blocks and rocks. They are national symbols around which many elements of Moroccan history and identity have been formed.

However, we observe a stark dichotomy in mountains, of being rich in resources while simultaneously being a place of great poverty due to the lack of development that has accompanied mountains and their populations for decades. This is what attracted me to become a mountain activist within the global human rights movement, along with the growing international interest in the need to protect mountains as water towers, hosts of biodiversity, and their impact on the climate and environmental balances.

What is the Coalition Civile pour la Montagne doing to promote sustainable mountain development?

Our Coalition was born from the emerging mountain movement, to amplify the voice of mountain people and advocate for their right to fair and equitable development. The main reasons behind the creation of our coalition were to respond to the alarming situation of the Moroccan mountains.

Mountain people are out-migrating in vast numbers, and those that remain are experiencing difficulties, sometimes extreme, due to socioeconomic disparities between mountain areas and the rest of the country. Natural resources and mountain land suffer from poor governance and unsustainable use, of which the mountain environments and their inhabitants are the first victims. Meanwhile, there is a lack of coherence and convergence among ongoing programmes and strategies as well as a lack public policies specifically oriented to mountains and their needs.

A number of civil and political actors have realized the importance of the legislative approach for responding to mountain people and environments' challenges. That is why we are promoting the adoption of a mountain-specific law, capable of defining appropriate responses to ensure an integrated and fair development of mountain regions.

What projects is Coalition Civile pour la Montagne working on? Are there projects you hope to begin in the near future?

Our projects range from advocacy and capacity building, to awareness-raising, research and community service. The Coalition Civile pour la Montagne has organized two international forums on "Mountains and the right to development", in addition to events on other topics and strategic areas of action.

We are currently carrying out a campaign to collect 20 000 signatures supporting the motion to adopt the mountain-specific law, as well as hosting meetings and round tables to inform and convince the target population throughout many regions in Morocco.

At regional level, we have established a memorandum of understanding with the Albertine Rift Conservation Society (ARCOS), an important organization in Africa and a fellow Mountain Partnership member. We plan to hold an African Mountain Forum together by April 2024.

Two future projects that are pending while we search for funding include one to supply 50 000 households or 300 schools with cook stoves whose thermal efficiency is high (i.e. they use less fire wood, produce more heat, provide more than one function, and conserve heat over a longer period of time with minimum wood burned). The second project intends to plant 10 000 hectares of forests mainly in the areas that were burnt in summer 2022.

What is the main benefit of being a member of the Mountain Partnership?

The Coalition Civile pour la Montagnejoined the Mountain Partnership in 2017, and it has benefited us a lot. Personally, I have been able to deepen my knowledge about additional aspects of mountain themes and issues by exchanging with other members and hearing their insights on global experiences and approaches to deal with mountain development and protection.

My organization has also gained more visibility at the international level and thus a better position at the national level. We are placed in a larger network with more opportunities for exchange and growth.

As a newly elected member of the Steering Committee, what objectives do you have for your electoral group to increase engagement and promote sustainable mountain development?

The main objective for this mandate is to reinforce the contribution of my constituency (i.e. Major Groups of Near East and North Africa) to the Mountain Partnership and to enhance its presence in the Partnership's actions. The challenge is to expand membership and consolidate collaboration between members. To this end, I plan to connect with Algeria, Egypt, Lebanon and Tunisia. I have already been in touch with the focal point appointed by the government, and I will continue to push for more involvement from their side.

In addition to the legislative motion for a Mountain Law, my organization will submit a memorandum urging the Government of Morocco to establish an action plan in line with the Five Years of Action for the Development of Mountain Regions 2023-2027. This memorandum will require 4 000 signatures.

On the regional level, I will work on recruiting other organizations to join the Mountain Partnership from my contacts in Guinea, Nigeria and Senegal.

Follow this new series from the Mountain Partnership Secretariat to learn more about your electoral group's elected Steering Committee representative! Not sure which electoral group you're a part of? Visit your government or organization's ollow this new series from the Mountain Partnership Secretariat to learn more about your electoral group's elected Steering Committee representative! Not sure which electoral group you're a part of? Visit your government or organization's member detail page or contact [email protected].

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