Mountain Tourism as a Catalyst for Territorial Development: Participatory Governance, Patrimonial Valorization, and the Quest for Equity in Azilal Province, Morocco

Résumé

Mountain regions often encapsulate a paradox of ecological richness and cultural heritage coexisting with pronounced socio-economic marginalization. In Morocco’s High Atlas province of Azilal, this tension is evident through striking natural features, waterfalls, geological formations, and centuries-old agroforestry systems, and a resilient Amazigh (Berber) culture, set against inadequate infrastructure, high poverty rates, and environmental fragility. This study employs a multidisciplinary framework rooted in the Territorialized Tourism System (TTS) approach to explore how sustainable tourism might reconcile local development goals with heritage preservation. Using Geographic Information Systems (GIS), we integrate spatial, socio-economic, and environmental data to map tourism assets, infrastructural gaps, and land-use changes between 2017 and 2023. Findings reveal significant potential in ecotourism, cultural tourism, and adventure tourism, underpinned by a rich natural and cultural landscape. Yet, rapid land conversion and deforestation suggest that uncoordinated development could undermine environmental integrity. Moreover, persistent governance challenges, fragmented local institutions, inadequate financial support, and limited inter-village coordination, hinder equitable tourism benefit-sharing. Community-based initiatives in areas like Aït Bouguemez demonstrate that grassroots models can bolster local incomes and preserve cultural practices, but scaling such efforts requires cohesive branding, infrastructure upgrades, and participatory governance. These results underscore the need to treat tourism as an integrated, place-based system, uniting heritage, agroecology, and community enterprises in a sustainable development strategy. Ultimately, Azilal’s experience highlights that harnessing mountain regions’ inherent assets for tourism demands not only robust spatial analysis and careful planning but also inclusive, community-led governance to achieve long-term territorial resilience.impacts of tourism development. The selected municipalities represent an empirical illustration of the iterative processes involved in enhancing territorial resources, fostering innovation, and promoting new forms and uses of tourism within a Territorialized Tourism System in the province of Azilal.

Classification JEL : Z32

Paper type : Empirical Research