Country Morocco Capital Tangier Area 15,089 km² | Created September 2015 Time zone WET (UTC+0) | |
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Population 3.557 million (1 Sep 2014) Colleges and Universities Abdelmalek Essaâdi University, National School Trading And Management De Tanger Clubs and Teams IR Tanger, Moghreb Tétouan, Atlético Tetuán, Chabab Larache Destinations Tangier, Chefchaouen, Tétouan, Asilah, Larache Points of interest Dar el Makhzen, American Legation - Tangier, Cape Malabata, Atlas Mountains, Kasbah Museum | ||
Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima (Arabic: طنجة - تطوان - الحسيمة) is one of the twelve regions of Morocco. It covers an area of 15,090 km² and recorded a population of 3,556,729 in the 2014 Moroccan census. The capital of the region is Tangier.
Contents
Map of Tangier-Tetouan, Morocco
Geography
Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima is the northernmost of Morocco's twelve regions. In the north it faces the Strait of Gibraltar and the Mediterranean Sea and borders the Spanish exclave of Ceuta. It also borders the Moroccan regions of Rabat-Salé-Kénitra to the southwest, Fès-Meknès to the southeast and Oriental to the east. The Rif rises in the eastern part of the region and is the location of Al Hoceima National Park and Talassemtane National Park. The land near the Atlantic coast in the west is less rugged, and the fertile southwestern corner of the region is drained by the Loukkos River.
History
Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima was formed in September 2015 by adding Al Hoceima Province, formerly part of Taza-Al Hoceima-Taounate region, with the former Tangier-Tetouan region.
Government
Ilyas El Omari, a member of the Authenticity and Modernity Party, was elected as the regional council's first president on 14 September 2015.
Subdivisions
Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima comprises two prefectures and six provinces:
Economy
Agriculture is a major economic activity in the Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region. Major crops include cereals, pulses, olives and sugarcane. Animal husbandry and fishing are also important contributors to the economy. Various free economic zones have been set up in the area surrounding the Tanger-Med container port, one of Africa's busiest, to promote industrial growth and foreign investment. The region is also heavily reliant on tourism.
Infrastructure
The A1 expressway connects Tangier with the national capital Rabat. There are also two shorter expressways in the region: the A4 bypasses Tangier and links the A1 expressway to the Tanger-Med port, and the A6 connects Tetouan with M'Diq and Fnideq. National Route 2 connects Tangier and Tetouan with Al Hoceima via an inland route, while National Route 16 provides a coastal route between the same cities. National Route 13 branches off the N2 near Chefchaouen and runs south via Ouezzane to Meknes and beyond.
Tangier's Ibn Battouta Airport is the busiest airport in the region. Al Hoceima's Cherif Al Idrissi Airport and Tetouan's Sania Ramel Airport also receive commercial flights.
The first phase of a projected Casablanca–Tangier high-speed rail line is currently under construction between Tangier and Kenitra and is expected to open in early 2018.