Berkane () is a city in northeastern

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

, limited by the Mediterranean to the north, the Kis river (Moroccan-

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

n border) and Oujda Province in the east, Nador Province to the west, and

Taourirt Province Taourirt () is a province in the Oriental (Morocco), Oriental Region of Morocco. Its population in 2004 is 206,762 The major cities and towns are: * Debdou * El Aioun Sidi Mellouk * Taourirt, Morocco, Taourirt Subdivisions The province is divide ...

in the south. It is the capital of Berkane Province. Sidi Ahmed Aberkane

Population

The city recorded a population of 109,237 in the

2014 Moroccan census The 2014 Moroccan census was held in Morocco between 1 September and 20 September 2014. The census was conducted by the High Planning Commission. The eastern dialect of

Moroccan Arabic Moroccan Arabic ( ), also known as Darija ( or ), is the dialectal, vernacular form or forms of Arabic spoken in Morocco. It is part of the Maghrebi Arabic dialect continuum and as such is mutually intelligible to some extent with Algerian ...

is spoken by most citizens, although

Berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa * Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages Places * Berber, Sudan, a town on the Nile People with the surname * Ady Berber (1913–196 ...

is also spoken by some people. According to the 2014 census, the population of the Berkane agglomeration is 306,901, that is, an estimated 12.5 percent of the population of the eastern region, with a high density of 145.7 people per square kilometer compared to 25.7 people per square kilometer in relation to the region and a high

urbanization Urbanization (or urbanisation in British English) is the population shift from Rural area, rural to urban areas, the corresponding decrease in the proportion of people living in rural areas, and the ways in which societies adapt to this change. ...

rate of 63.2 percent.

Historic population

The population rose from 368 in 1917 to 3,600 in 1936 and then doubled in 1947, it reached 7,545, then jumped to 20,496 in 1960, then to 60,490 in 1982 and 77,026 in 1994. In the year 1996, the city's population was estimated at 82,000.

Recent city

The city of Berkane is considered an agricultural city as a result of the irrigation policy that colonialism followed, starting in the middle of the first half of the twentieth century, in the major irrigated circles. Especially since it is located on one of the richest plains in

, the Tarifa plain. The emergence of Berkane as a city, and its development, was linked to the local agricultural wealth. However the administrative leadership of the fledgling city, which abolished the old political entities of the Bni Iznasen tribes, was behind the French political decision in the colonial period to assign the role of direct leadership to Berkane over the neighboring tribes. The development of the

agricultural Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created f ...

economy and the improvement of the standard of living in the city have contributed to emptying the tribes from their population and displacing the human weight from the mountain fortress to the open plain and facilitated the process of military control of the French occupation of the region. The massive influx of workers in the agriculture sector from different Moroccan regions has also disrupted the homogeneous tribal fabric.

Economy

Berkane is considered a major player in the

citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the family Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, mandarins, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. ''Citrus'' is nativ ...

fruit industry in North-Morocco, and high-quality fresh fruit and vegetables are plentiful year round. It is known for its farms of clementines. Also, a large statue of an orange is at the center of town. It is very close to Saïdia, a popular beach resort town on the Mediterranean, as well as Tafoughalt, a small village in the nearby mountains known for its healthy air and herb markets.

Sports

Berkane's most popular sport club is the

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

club RS Berkane. Well known in the continental competitions. Rs berkane have won 3 major African titles, including 2

CAF Confederation Cup The CAF Confederation Cup, known as the TotalEnergies CAF Confederation Cup for sponsorship purposes, is an annual association football football team, club competition established in 2004 and organized by Confederation of African Football, CAF ...

and 1

CAF Super Cup The CAF Super Cup, known as TotalEnergies CAF Super Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual African association football competition contested between the winners of the CAF Champions League and the CAF Confederation Cup. The competition was f ...

Notable people

Abdelkader El Brazi Abdelkader El Brazi (; 5 November 1964 – 24 January 2014) was a Moroccan football goalkeeper. He started his career as a goalkeeper with his hometown's team Renaissance de Berkane, and played also for FAR Rabat and Ismaily SC. He played ...

, Former international goalkeeper * Aziz Bouhaddouz, International footballer * Fouzi Lekjaa, Football administrator and businessman * Hicham El Guerrouj, Former olympic athlete, world record holder for the fastest mile also the current world record holder in the 1500m and 2000m * Mohammed Hendouf, Moroccan-Belgian kickboxer * Abbas El Fassi, Former Prime Minister of Morocco *

Mbarek Bekkay Mbarek Bekkay Lahbil (; April 18, 1907 – April 12, 1961) was the first Prime Minister of Morocco between December 7, 1955, and April 15, 1958. Bekkay held the rank of colonel in the French army. He was the first Prime Minister of Morocco sin ...

, 1st Prime Minister of Morocco

Twin towns – sister cities

Berkane is twinned with: * Bondy, France *

Perpignan Perpignan (, , ; ; ) is the prefectures in France, prefecture of the Pyrénées-Orientales departments of France, department in Southern France, in the heart of the plain of Roussillon, at the foot of the Pyrenees a few kilometres from the Me ...

, France * Saint-Gilles, Belgium *

Zeist Zeist () is the Capital city, capital and largest town of the Zeist (municipality), municipality of Zeist. The town is located in the Utrecht (province), Utrecht province of the Netherlands, east of the city of Utrecht. History The town of " ...

, Netherlands

References

External links

''Nador Rif News'' شبكة أخبار الناظور و الريف أريفينو.نت ; www.ariffino.netBerkane entry in lexicorientBerkane Fort Web Site
{{Authority control Populated places in Berkane Province Municipalities of Morocco Provincial capitals in Morocco