39% of Moroccans believe the government should focus on preventing pollution and protecting the environment over job creation or other disruptions to daily life, according to a recent poll conducted by the pan-African network Afrobarometer.
In contrast, 65% of Nigerians in Niger prefer the government to prioritize job creation, even if it means environmental costs.
The findings also revealed that 64% of Moroccans view pollution—such as trash buildup, or damage to air, water, or land quality—as a serious issue in their communities, placing Morocco slightly below the African average of 66%.
Mauritania and Tunisia, on the other hand, lead the continent, with 90% and 88% of citizens, respectively, seeing pollution as a major concern.
The survey highlighted that 30% of Moroccans consider sanitation the top environmental issue, followed by air pollution at 22%, and water source pollution at 16%. Trash or plastic disposal was seen as a concern by 14%, while deforestation was regarded as the least pressing issue, with only 2% considering it the most important.
In contrast to Tunisia, where 38% of Tunisians view trash or plastic disposal as the most important environmental issue, other concerns include deforestation at 4%, pollution of water sources at 25%, sanitation at 14%, and air pollution at 11%.
The survey also found that trash disposal and plastic waste are highlighted by the fact that three-quarters (76%) of Africans consider plastic bags a major source of pollution, with Morocco (61%) ranking among the lowest, unlike Togo and Mauritius (88%), where plastic bags are seen as a major source of pollution.
In this regard, 43% of Moroccans believe the national government should be responsible for reducing environmental pollution, while 23% pointed to local government and 17% to individual citizens.
The findings also revealed that 43% of Moroccans rated the government’s performance in reducing pollution and protecting the environment as very good, above the continental average of 40% across 39 countries. However, 62% believe the government should take further action in this area.
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