Découvrez les villes membres du Réseau :

Fès

1 150 131 habitants (2014)
flag Morocco Morocco
  • Maire : Driss EL AZAMI EL IDRISSI
  • Région : Fès
  • Site web : www.fes.ma

Historical background

The first capital of the Kingdom in 808 with Idriss II, then twice after it, in the 18th century with the Marinid and in the 19th century under the reign of Moulay Abdallah, Fès, a spiritual and cultural centre of traditional Morocco, is a city with multiple facets. Founded in 808 by Idriss II, the son of Idriss 1st, the history of Fès can be divided into three periods: the most ancient part, “Fès El Bali”, under Idriss II at the beginning of the 9th century, “Fès el Jadid” in the 13th century and the modern city “the new city” from the 19th century. A welcoming town, Fès welcomed Muslim refugee families from Andalusia on the right side of the oued, whereas refugees from Kairouan set up on the left side. To the people of Kerouan, we owe the splendid mosque Qaraouirine, with is sparkling roof and its emerald tiles. The oldest teaching centre in the world, even before Oxford and La Sorbonne, this mosque has been one the main intellectual poles in North Africa. Located on the commercial crossroad of the Mediterranean South side, Fès was the important passage to link merchant cities of this period, such as Sebat, Séla, Tlemcen and Sijilmassa. Therefore, it was the great commercial trade with the rest of the Muslim world, notably Cordoba and Kairouan, which gave Fès this status of significant economic and commercial town. Thanks to its authentic and unique heritage, Fès is on the list of the UNESCO World Heritage.

Fès, the qualities of a great metropolis

  • Surface area: 311.5 square km
  • Number of urban districts: 6
  • Number of urban municipalities: 2
  • Number of rural municipalities: 3
  • Population: 1.150.131 inhabitants

Its particularities:

  • A national pole of culture and heritage
  • 62% of the industrial units of the region
  • The old medina (280 ha) in the UNESCO World Heritage in 1981.

The assets of Fès

The international airport “Fès Sais”, certified ISO 2000/9001, on a surface area of 22.600 square m and an annual capacity of 3 to 5 million passengers after the opening up of the extension (Terminal 2).

Activities

  • Fès Shore, focusing on offshoring (20 ha), a P21 in Fès with a free zone
  • A unit of the touristic planning of Oued Fès (166 ha) with its 18 holes golf course and its touristic units.
  • Two zones of activity dedicated to handcraft: Ain Nokbi for coppersmiths and Benjellika for potters.

Education: 3 universities

  • University Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdellah Fès
  • University Quaraouiyine Fès
  • Euro-Mediterranean University of Fès

A region on the Casablanca – Oujda road axis

Open since July 2011, the Fès-Oujda motorway, 320 km long, crosses three regions of the Kingdom (Fès-Boulmane, Taza-Al Hoceima-Taounate and the Oriental) and extend the motorway liaison Rabat-Meknès-Fès to shape in the long run a great East-West axis.

Key numbers

  • The city of Fès, capital of handcraft and cradle of handcraft activities: 64109 artisans spreading over 17211 units of productions and more than 205 crafts.
  • 654 industrial units, 3rd place at the national level
  • 31.700 industrial jobs, 4th place at the national level
  • The regional industry is dominated by two main sectors: the food-processing industry and textile and leather.
  • There is a important qualified workforce, availability of raw materials (mainly agricultural), in many areas (Sidi Brahi m – Ain Chkef -Miftah El khair Ras El Maa, Doukkarat…..).
  • A touristic destination with multiple natural and cultural assets
  • Two 18 holes golf courses, an equestrian centre, sport clubs
  • Hotels with quality accommodation, Riads and authentic palaces
  • Cultural tourism: many festivals and notably the international festival of world sacred music of Fès.
  • More than 25 call centres (bpo), adding to the companies operating in the ITO sector, which employs more than 3000 people.

Great projects coming in

The university hospital centre “Foundation Cheikh Khalifa Ibn Zaid”: this complex is presented by the Foundation Cheikh Khalifa Ibn Zaid, and is made of a hospital centre that is next to the university of health sciences, which should enable to create a positive dynamic for students in medicine. The project spreads over a surface area of 25 ha, in the rural municipality of Ain Chkef, province of Moulay Yacoub. It is made of:

  • A hospital with 140 beds and 19 specialities.
  • A faculty of medicine with a capacity of 150 students.
  • A university campus
  • A re-education centre
  • A sport club

The project of Euro-Mediterranean city of Fès : from the first university in the world, the “Al Quaraouiyine”, founded in 895, to a Euro-Mediterranean university in 2014.

  • Surface area: 17ha
  • Jobs: 631 jobs
  • Number of students: 6000
  • University developed in the framework of a Union for the Mediterranean project

Fès Shore platform

  • 20 ha
  • 1.2 billion DH
  • Park dedicated to off shoring activities
  • Infrastructures and world class services

There are currently five sites on the Fès Shore, and the six is in progress:

  • The Euro-Mediterranean University: 1200 square meters
  • The superior school of automobile and aeronautic engineering ESI2A: 708 square meters
  • The ALTEN company (computer development): 1750 square meters
  • GSIT: 676 square meters
  • Acticall (the main actor of client relation in Morocco): 1700 square meters

Position géographique