Geology Reference
In-Depth Information
(CERDAF) (Bukavu, RDC) and the Geological Mining
Association of Mozambique (AGMM).
The day was
ve countries
(Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, Tunisia and Romania), where
workshops, conferences, exhibitions and
rst celebrated in 2013 in
eld trips were
organized (Fig.
7
a
-
e). In 2014, the day was celebrated under
the theme
Geoeducation, Geoheritage and Peace building in
Africa and Middle East
“
”
.
3
National and Regional Activities
3.1
Morocco
Bordered to the north by the Mediterranean Sea and to the
west by the Atlantic Ocean, Morocco supports a diverse
geography and climate, from the temperate Rif in the north,
to the Sahara desert in the south, and possesses a rich bio and
geodiversity with varied landscapes. Pioneering French
geoscientists described the country as a
“
Paradise for geol-
ogists
. Moroccan geoheritage spans for more than
2,700 Ma from the Archaean to the Quaternary. The mainly
arid and semi-arid climate of Morocco has contributed to the
development and preservation of excellent exposures of
many of these features. The paleontological record of Mor-
occo has yielded fossils of many kinds throughout nearly all
geological periods, including dinosaurs, trilobites, cephalo-
pods (Orthoceras, goniatites and ammonites), Devonian and
Liassic reefs and human fossil remains such as
Homo erectus
and
modern
Homo
.
The geostrategic position of Morocco, at the juncture of
Africa and Europe, makes it a land where many civilizations
have met through time leaving as witness archaeological
evidence of outstanding value. The Moroccan geodiversity is
thus even more attractive as it is related to exceptional his-
torical, archaeological, architectural, cultural and traditional
frames which vary with the range of its geodiversity.
Morocco has long recognized the value of this heritage and,
since the beginning of the 20th century, has introduced
national legislation for the protection and the conservation of
its natural and cultural heritage. The Cheri
”
an Dahir of the
29th November 1912, related to the conservation of historic
monuments and historical inscriptions, was the starting point
of this policy. Since then, signi
ca-
tions have been made to the legislation, and Morocco has
rati
cant changes and modi
ed most of the conventions relating to cultural and natural
heritage at regional and international levels (Kassou
2012
).
However, Morocco does not have any laws to protect its
Fig. 4
Workshop to launch the geoparks initiative in Senegal (
a
) and
some visited geosites during the related
eld trip: the
“
Mamelles
”
recent volcanism (
b
and
c
) and the Popenguine Escarpment (
d
). Dakar,
the 7th and 9th November 2012
b
