Economic value of insect pollination of major crops in Morocco

Pollinators play an important role in agriculture, biodiversity conservation, ecosystem protection, and climate change adaptation. The global decline in pollinators has an impact on food production and human well-being. In this paper, the value of insect pollination for human food crops in Morocco was calculated using a bioeconomic approach. The total value of crop for all selected crops is US$4,549.20 M, while the economic value of insect pollination is US$1,235.06 M, accounting for 8.52% of the total value of the agricultural GDP, and the ratio of vulnerability is 27.15%. Moroccan farmers are hesitant to use pollination services due to a lack of knowledge about the role of insect pollinators in food production. The increasing evidence regarding the importance of pollinators should be incorporated into Morocco's national agricultural policy to support beekeeping practices and sustainable farming.

Automated summary

Pollinators play a crucial role in agriculture, biodiversity conservation, ecosystem protection, and climate change adaptation. The global decline in pollinators has a significant impact on food production and human well-being. Moroccan farmers have a low utilization rate of pollination services, mainly due to a lack of knowledge about the importance of insect pollination, highlighting the necessity of incorporating this importance into the national agricultural policy to support beekeeping and sustainable farming practices.