Sidi Ifni Province

The about 3800 km ² and around 130,000 inhabitants Sidi Ifni province forms the extreme south-west of the Moroccan Souss -Massa -Draa.

Geography

Location

The Sidi Ifni province is bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean, on the north by the province of Tiznit and on the south by the province of Guelmim.

Landscape

The province is nestled in the western foothills of the Anti-Atlas Mountains. After a flat stretch of coast landscape profile is hilly and rises rapidly towards the east to heights of over 1,000 m at.

Population

The Arabic and Berber dialects ( Tachelhit and Tamazight ) speaking Muslim population is about 80% in rural communities. Only about 20 % lived in 2004 in the two main cities of Sidi Ifni (approx. 20,000 inhabitants) and Lakhsas (approx. 4,000 inhabitants).

History

The history of the province is closely linked to the City Sidi Ifni, which was from 1884 to 1969 a Spanish exclave. After the independence of Morocco (1956 ) the special status of the territory remained until the year 1969; after the area was incorporated into the province of the former Agadir, from the province of Tiznit was separated in 1975. From this in turn split - after violent protests last year in which the century-old independent traditions played a significant role - that in 2009 the newly created province of Sidi Ifni from.

Economy

Main industries of the province are agriculture and fishing. There are several smaller cooperatives for the production of argan oil and prickly pears are processed into jams, etc.. The beautiful sandy beaches and the colonial time -related European- liberal infrastructure also offer an important potential for developing tourism. For surfers, the beaches of Sidi Ifni have long been appreciated.

Attractions

The city was built mainly in the 1930s Sidi Ifni has many Art Deco buildings in which also Moorish style elements have been integrated, and give up to the present day, a European- colonial flair.