Agadir: The Souss-Massa Region Boosts Its University Offerings

The Souss‑Massa region and Ibn Zohr University have launched a programme to construct and equip three strategic university establishments: an Institute of Sports Professions, a Faculty of Dental Medicine and a Higher School of Food Industries and Biotechnology. The three structures answer real, identified needs and are part of the region’s drive toward academic and economic up‑scaling.

The Institute of Sports Professions is the most eagerly awaited in the current context. Morocco is preparing to host the 2030 World Cup. The sports economy is undergoing full structuring at the national level. Training specialists in sports science, physical preparation, sports‑organisation management and sports‑infrastructure engineering is no longer a luxury – it is a necessity. Agadir, a city with a long sporting tradition and an active tourist destination, is a logical anchor for this type of training.

The Faculty of Dental Medicine responds to another urgency: health. Souss‑Massa, with more than three million inhabitants, still lacks a dedicated dental‑medicine faculty. The shortage of qualified human resources in this field is real, and its consequences are felt in access to oral‑health care. This establishment will fill a structural gap while boosting the medical attractiveness of the territory.

The Higher School of Food Industries and Biotechnology perhaps has the most obvious link to the region. Souss‑Massa is Morocco’s leading agricultural export region. Tomatoes, citrus, horticulture – sectors that generate billions of dirhams but suffer from a lack of local processing and added‑value. Training experts in agri‑food, food safety, biotechnology and agricultural‑resource valorisation tackles this deficit at its root and creates conditions for an up‑grade of the regional agricultural economy.

These three institutions are part of a broader movement. Ibn Zohr University has just expanded its network to 39 structures covering Morocco’s far south. The three new components strengthen this mesh by targeting high‑potential sectors. They follow a simple logic: train locally the skills the territory needs rather than importing them or seeing them leave elsewhere.

Source: lavieeco