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116-629: Bank of Africa ( BOA ) is an international financial services group headquartered in Casablanca , Morocco . It was formed through the 2010 acquisition of Bank of Africa (est. 1982 in Mali ) by the Banque Marocaine du Commerce Extérieur ( BMCE , Arabic : البنك المغربي للتجارة الخارجية , lit.   ' Moroccan Bank of Foreign Trade ' , est. 1959), following which BMCE rebranded its commercial operations as Bank of Africa in 2020. The BMCE name survives in

232-594: A fertility statuette, created in the region of Senegambia , and may be associated with the emergence of complexly organized pastoral societies in West Africa between 4000 BCE and 1000 BCE. Though possibly developed as early as 5000 BCE, Nsibidi may have also developed in 2000 BCE, as evidenced by depictions of the West African script on Ikom monoliths at Ikom , in Nigeria . Migration of Saharan peoples south of

348-778: A massacre of working class Moroccans, carried out by Senegalese Tirailleurs in the service of the French colonial army , was instigated just as Sultan Muhammed V was due to make a speech in Tangier appealing for independence. Riots in Casablanca took place from 7–8 December 1952, in response to the assassination of the Tunisian labor unionist Farhat Hached by La Main Rouge —the clandestine militant wing of French intelligence . Then, on 25 December 1953 (Christmas Day), Muhammad Zarqtuni orchestrated

464-710: A 35% shareholding interest, bringing financial capital and banking expertise. BMCE became majority owner of the BOA group in 2010, and held a 72.6 percent equity stake by 2013. In 2020, BMCE itself assumed the new name Bank of Africa - BMCE Group. Through successive transactions since 2004, Crédit Mutuel Alliance Fédérale has become the second major shareholder of the group with 25% of the company's equity as of end-2020. The largest shareholder remains Othman Benjelloun at 27.4 percent, through his O Capital holding company and insurance company RMA Watanya. As of end-2023, Bank of Africa S.A. (Luxembourg) remained as an internal holding company of

580-459: A Dutch writer, describing Benin in his book Description of Africa (1668) ". Its craft was the most adored and treasured bronze casting in the history of Africa. It was annexed by the British Empire in 1897 during the invasion and scramble of Africa. Portuguese traders began establishing settlements along the coast in 1445, followed by the French , English , Spanish , Danish and Dutch ;

696-478: A bombing of Casablanca's Central Market in response to the forced exile of Sultan Muhammad V and the royal family on 20 August ( Eid al-Adha ) of that year. Morocco gained independence from France in 1956. The post-independence era witnessed significant urban transformations and socio-economic shifts, particularly in neighborhoods like Hay Mohammadi, which were deeply impacted by neoliberal policies and state-led urban redevelopment projects. On 4–7 January 1961,

812-566: A dozen deaths while the UNFP reported more than 1,000. King Hassan II blamed the events on teachers and parents, and declared in a speech to the nation on 30 March 1965: "There is no greater danger to the State than a so-called intellectual. It would have been better if you were all illiterate." On 6 June 1981, the Casablanca Bread Riots took place, which were sparked by a sharp increase in

928-630: A fisheries regulations Act in 2010 and installed a satellite-based monitoring system and Senegal enacted a fisheries code in 2015. In Cape Verde, the fishermen communities of Palmiera and Santa Maria have organized themselves to protect fishing zones. Mozambique finally created a conservation area, including a coastline. West Africa, broadly defined to include the western portion of the Maghreb ( Western Sahara , Morocco , Algeria , and Tunisia ), occupies an area in excess of 6,140,000 km , or approximately one-fifth of Africa. The vast majority of this land

1044-483: A fully-fledged Spanish subsidiary. In 1989, it took a minority stake in the public development bank of Mali , the first expansion of a Moroccan bank into sub-Saharan Africa . In 1995, it was privatized and taken over by Othman Benjelloun through his controlling ownership of insurer Royale Marocaine d'Assurance  [ fr ] . Bank of Africa was established in late 1982, in Bamako, Mali , by local businesspeople. It

1160-709: A mix of Western and multilateral development institutions, and local individuals and entities. BOA also maintains representative offices in Ethiopia , Spain , the United Kingdom , China , Italy , Germany , UAE , Belgium , Canada , and the Netherlands . Nonbank subsidiaries: Additional entities of the BOA Group: Casablanca Casablanca is Morocco's chief port, with the Port of Casablanca being one of

1276-759: A policy of "asymmetrical neutrality" in favour of the Germans. French colonists in Morocco generally supported Pétain, while Moroccans tended to favour de Gaulle and the Allies . Operation Torch , which started on 8 November 1942, was the British-American invasion of French North Africa during the North African campaign of World War II . The Western Task Force, composed of American units led by Major General George S. Patton and Rear Admiral Henry Kent Hewitt , carried out

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1392-686: A quarry in Roches Noires , passing through the sacred Sidi Belyout graveyard. In resistance to this and the measures of the 1906 Treaty of Algeciras, tribesmen of the Chaouia attacked the locomotive, killing 9 Compagnie Marocaine laborers—3 French, 3 Italians, and 3 Spanish. In response, the French bombarded the city in August 1907 with multiple gunboats and landed troops inside the town, causing severe damage and killing between 600 and 3,000 Moroccans. Estimates for

1508-590: A result of increasing aridification of the Green Sahara , Central Saharan hunter-gatherers and cattle herders may have used seasonal waterways as the migratory route taken to the Niger River and Chad Basin of West Africa. In 2000 BCE, " Thiaroye Woman", also known as the " Venus of Thiaroye", may have been the earliest statuette created in Sub-Saharan West Africa; it may have particularly been

1624-641: A rich ecology , with strong biodiversity and several distinct regions. The area's climate and ecology are heavily influenced by the dry Sahara to the north and east, which provides dry winds during the Harmattan , as well as the Atlantic Ocean to the south and west, which provides seasonal monsoons. This mixture of climates gives West Africa a rich array of biomes , from biodiversity-rich tropical forests to drylands supporting rare and endangered fauna such as pangolins , rhinoceros , and elephants . Because of

1740-547: A subgroup of the Igbo people. The Kingdom of Nri was unusual in the history of world government in that its leader exercised no military power over his subjects. The kingdom existed as a sphere of religious and political influence over a third of Igboland and was administered by a priest-king called an Eze Nri . The Eze Nri managed trade and diplomacy on behalf of the Nri people and possessed divine authority in religious matters. The Oyo Empire

1856-406: Is Africa's third-largest in terms of market capitalization , as of December 2022. Major Moroccan companies and many of the largest American and European companies operating in the country have their headquarters and main industrial facilities in Casablanca. Recent industrial statistics show that Casablanca is the main industrial zone in the country. Before the 15th century, the settlement at what

1972-481: Is a significant financial centre , ranking 54th globally in the September 2023 Global Financial Centres Index rankings, between Brussels and Rome . The Casablanca Stock Exchange is Africa's third-largest in terms of market capitalization , as of December 2022. West Africa West Africa , also called Western Africa , is the westernmost region of Africa . The United Nations defines Western Africa as

2088-497: Is a transnational highway project to link 12 West African coastal states, from Mauritania in the north-west of the region to Nigeria in the east, with feeder roads already existing to two landlocked countries, Mali and Burkina Faso . The eastern end of the highway terminates at Lagos , Nigeria . Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) consider its western end to be Nouakchott , Mauritania , or to be Dakar , Senegal , giving rise to these alternative names for

2204-528: Is considered the locomotive of the development of the Moroccan economy . It attracts 32% of the country's production units and 56% of industrial labor . The region uses 30% of the national electricity production. With MAD 93 billion, the region contributes to 44% of the industrial production of the kingdom. About 33% of national industrial exports, MAD 27 billion, comes from the Grand Casablanca; 30% of

2320-503: Is demographically and economically one of the fastest growing on the African continent. Early history in West Africa includes a number of prominent regional powers that dominated different parts of both the coastal and internal trade networks, such as the Mali and Gao Empires . West Africa sat at the intersection of trade routes between Arab -dominated North Africa and further south on

2436-565: Is now Casablanca had been called Anfa , rendered in European sources variously as El-Anfa, Anafa or Anaffa, Anafe, Anife, Anafee, Nafe, and Nafee. Ibn Khaldun ascribed the name to the Anfaça , a branch of the Auréba  [ ar ] tribe of the Maghreb , though the sociologist André Adam refuted this claim due to the absence of the third syllable. Nahum Slouschz gave a Hebrew etymology, citing

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2552-403: Is one of 12 major African cities ( Abidjan , Alexandria , Algiers , Cape Town , Casablanca, Dakar , Dar es Salaam , Durban , Lagos , Lomé , Luanda and Maputo ) which would be the most severely affected by future sea level rise . It estimates that they would collectively sustain cumulative damages of US$ 65 billion under RCP 4.5 and US$ 86.5 billion for the high-emission scenario RCP 8.5 by

2668-579: Is plains lying less than 300 meters above sea level, though isolated high points exist in numerous states along the southern shore of West Africa. Benin Burkina Faso The Gambia Ghana Guinea-Bissau Guinea Ivory Coast Liberia Mali Mauritania Nigeria Niger Senegal Sierra Leone Togo The northern section of West Africa (narrowly defined to exclude

2784-457: Is rather majestic and looks like a huge phallus and a deformed animal or thing is protruding from it. It is said to be the dwelling place of a pangool . Ngoye njuli is protected by the Senegalese authorities and attracts visitors. In West Africa, as in other parts of Africa where the baobab tree is found, the leaves are mixed with couscous and eaten, the bark of the tree is used to make ropes, and

2900-706: Is today Casablanca was founded and settled by Berbers by the seventh century BC. It was used as a port by the Phoenicians, then the Romans. In his book Description of Africa , Leo Africanus refers to ancient Casablanca as " Anfa ", a great city founded in the Berber kingdom of Barghawata in 744 AD. He believed Anfa was the most "prosperous city on the Atlantic Coast because of its fertile land." Barghawata rose as an independent state around this time, and continued until it

3016-622: The African slave trade began not long after, which over the following centuries would debilitate the region's economy and population. The slave trade also encouraged the formation of states such as the Bono State , Bambara Empire and Dahomey , whose economic activities include but not limited to exchanging slaves for European firearms . In the early 19th century, a series of Fulani reformist jihads swept across Western Africa. The most notable include Usman dan Fodio 's Fulani Empire , which replaced

3132-683: The Anfa Conference (also called the Casablanca Conference ) in January 1943. Prime Minister Winston Churchill and President Franklin D. Roosevelt discussed the progress of the war. Also in attendance were the Free France generals Charles de Gaulle and Henri Giraud , though they played minor roles and didn't participate in the military planning. It was at this conference that the Allies adopted

3248-554: The Benue Trough , and others on a line running from Mount Cameroon to Lake Chad . Colonial boundaries are reflected in the modern boundaries between contemporary West African states, cutting across ethnic and cultural lines, often dividing single ethnic groups between two or more states. In contrast to most of Central, Southern, and Southeast Africa, West Africa is not populated by Bantu -speaking peoples. The West African region can be divided into four climatic sub-regions namely

3364-769: The French Development Agency ), the Netherlands Development Finance Company (FMO), and Paris-based Natexis (later Natixis ). AFH / Bank of Africa Group expanded through a mix of internal growth and acquisitions, including: Meanwhile BOA established and grew operations of its own in Benin (1990), Burkina Faso (1998), Senegal (2001), the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2010), Togo (2013), and Ethiopia (2014). In 2004, in partnership with

3480-708: The Hausa city-states, Seku Amadu 's Massina Empire , which defeated the Bambara, and El Hadj Umar Tall 's Toucouleur Empire , which briefly conquered much of modern-day Mali. However, the French and British continued to advance in the Scramble for Africa , subjugating kingdom after kingdom. With the fall of Samory Ture's established Wassoulou Empire in 1898 and the Ashanti queen Yaa Asantewaa in 1902, most West African military resistance to colonial rule resulted in failure. Part of

3596-508: The Lexicon of Gesenius : anâphâh (a type of bird) or anaph (face, figure), though Adam refuted this arguing that even a Judaized population would still have spoken Tamazight . Adam also refuted an Arabic etymology, أنف ( anf , "nose"), as the city predated the linguistic Arabization of the country, and the term anf was not used to describe geographic areas. Adam affirmed a Tamazight etymology—from anfa "hill", anfa "promontory on

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3712-652: The National Union of Popular Forces -affiliated National Union of Moroccan Students, which spread to cities around the country and devolved into riots, started on 22 March 1965, in front of Lycée Mohammed V in Casablanca. The protests started as a peaceful march to demand the right to public higher education for Morocco, but expanded to include concerns of labourers, the unemployed, and other marginalized segments of society, and devolved into vandalism and rioting. The riots were violently repressed by security forces with tanks and armoured vehicles; Moroccan authorities reported

3828-626: The Senegambia region (Senegal and the Gambia) used to have a diverse wildlife including lions , hippopotamus , elephants , antelopes , leopards etc. However, during colonization, the European colonizers such as the French and British killed most of the wildlife particularly the lions, using their body parts as trophies. By the turn of the 20th century, the Senegambia region had lost most of its lion population and other exotic animals due to poaching . By

3944-499: The byline "BMCE Group" incorporated in the BOA brand identity. As of 2024, BOA's two main shareholders were Moroccan financier Othman Benjelloun and French bank Crédit Mutuel Alliance Fédérale , with around 27 and 25 percent respectively. BOA is listed on the Casablanca Stock Exchange . As of 2024, BOA was the third-largest bank in Morocco, behind market leader Attijariwafa Bank and the cooperative BCP Group . At

4060-531: The earthquake of 1755 , it was renamed " ad-Dār al-Bayḍāʾ " ( الدار البيضاء The White House ), though in vernacular use it was pronounced " Dar al-Baiḍā " ( دار البيضاء literally House of the White, although in Moroccan Arabic vernacular it retains the original sense of The White House ). The origins of the name "Casablanca" are unclear, although several theories have been suggested. André Adam mentions

4176-459: The forest-savanna region, were ultimately acculturated and admixed into the larger groups of West African agriculturalists , akin to the migratory Bantu -speaking agriculturalists and their encounters with Central African hunter-gatherers . The development of the region's economy allowed more centralized states and civilizations to form, beginning with Dhar Tichitt that began in 1600 B.C. followed by Djenné-Djenno beginning in 300 B.C. This

4292-554: The population history of West Africa . Acheulean tool-using archaic humans may have dwelled throughout West Africa since at least between 780,000 BP and 126,000 BP ( Middle Pleistocene ). During the Pleistocene , Middle Stone Age peoples (e.g., Iwo Eleru people , possibly Aterians ), who dwelled throughout West Africa between MIS 4 and MIS 2 , were gradually replaced by incoming Late Stone Age peoples , who migrated into West Africa as an increase in humid conditions resulted in

4408-565: The 10th-century Kingdom of Nri , which helped birth the arts and customs of the Igbo people , Bono State in the 11th century, which gave birth to the numerous Akan States, while Ife rose to prominence around the 12th century. Further east, Oyo arose as the dominant Yoruba state and the Aro Confederacy as a dominant Igbo state in modern-day Nigeria. The Kingdom of Nri was a West African medieval state in present-day southeastern Nigeria and

4524-491: The 16 countries of Benin , Burkina Faso , Cape Verde , The Gambia , Ghana , Guinea , Guinea-Bissau , Ivory Coast , Liberia , Mali , Mauritania , Niger , Nigeria , Senegal , Sierra Leone , and Togo , as well as Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha ( United Kingdom Overseas Territory ). The population of West Africa is estimated at 419 million people as of 2021, and at 381,981,000 as of 2017, of which 189,672,000 were female and 192,309,000 male. The region

4640-550: The 1860s, around 5,000 residents were there, and the population grew to around 10,000 by the late 1880s. Casablanca remained a modestly sized port, with a population reaching around 12,000 within a few years of the French conquest and arrival of French colonialists in 1906. By 1921, this rose to 110,000, largely through the development of shanty towns . The Treaty of Algeciras of 1906 formalized French preeminence in Morocco and included three measures that directly impacted Casablanca: that French officers would control operations at

4756-489: The 1930s, the Gambian elephant population became extinct. That phenomenon was not only limited to the Senegambia region but affected much of West Africa as the region lost much of its "natural resources once tied so closely to its cultural identity. Poaching has stolen most of its wildlife." The British issued poaching licenses, and although they would later try to reverse the damage that had been done by attempting to preserve what

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4872-418: The 1950s. Some have identified the two recent decades as a recovery period. Others refer to this as a period of "hydrological intensification" with much of the annual rainfall increase coming from more severe rain events and sometimes flooding rather than more frequent rainfall, or similarly other works underline the continuity of the drought even though the rainfall has increased. Since 1985, 54 percent of

4988-645: The Atlantic. Due to Mauritania's increasingly close ties to the Arab World and its 1999 withdrawal from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), in modern times it is often considered, especially in Africa, as now part of western North Africa . Major and principal cities in West Africa include, geographically eastward: Before European colonisation , West African countries such as those from

5104-624: The DRC (86.6 percent), Djibouti (100 percent), France (94.8 percent), Ghana (98 percent), Kenya (89.5 percent), Ivory Coast (69.8 percent), Madagascar (61.1 percent), Mali (64.2 percent), Niger (59.1 percent), Rwanda (95 percent), Senegal (61.7 percent), Tanzania (96.2 percent), Togo (94.5 percent), and Uganda (92.2 percent), as well as minority stakes in the Banque de l'Habitat du Bénin (24.2 percent) and Banque de Crédit de Bujumbura (24.22 percent). The individual entities' other shareholders are typically

5220-458: The Guinea Coast associated with a reduction of the wet spells under both 1.5 °C and 2 °C global warming level. A Trans-ECOWAS project, established in 2007, plans to upgrade railways in this zone. One of the goals of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is the development of an integrated railroad network. Aims include the extension of railways in member countries,

5336-662: The Guinea Coast, Soudano-Sahel, Sahel (extending eastward to the Ethiopian border) and the Sahara, each with different climatic conditions. The seasonal cycle of rainfall is mainly driven by the south-north movement of the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) which is characterised by the confluence between moist southwesterly monsoon winds and the dry northeasterly Harmattan. Based on the inter-annual rainfall variability, three main climatic periods have been observed over

5452-608: The Ivory Coast, have lost large areas of their rainforest . In 2005, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations ranked Nigeria as the state with the worst deforestation rate in the entire world. Causes include logging, subsistence agriculture , and the collection of fuelwoods. According to a ThoughtCo publication authored Steve Nix (2018), almost 90 percent of West Africa's original rainforest has been destroyed, and

5568-500: The Moroccan banking network is concentrated in Casablanca. One of the most important exports of Casablanca is phosphate. Other industries include fishing, fish canning, sawmills, furniture production, building materials, glass, textiles, electronics, leather work, processed food, spirits, soft drinks, and cigarettes. The Casablanca and Mohammedia seaports activity represent 50% of the international commercial flows of Morocco. Almost

5684-517: The Niger River basin between eastern Ghana and western Nigeria (northern Benin), rice ( oryza glaberrima ) in the Inner Niger Delta region of Mali, pearl millet ( cenchrus americanus ) in northern Mali and Mauritania, and cowpeas in northern Ghana. After having persisted as late as 1000 BP, or some period of time after 1500 CE, remaining West African hunter-gatherers, many of whom dwelt in

5800-589: The Sahel: the wet period from 1950 to the early 1960s followed by a dry period from 1972 to 1990 and then the period from 1991 onwards which has seen a partial rainfall recovery. During the dry period, the Sahel experienced a number of particularly severe drought events, with devastating effects. The recent decades, have also witnessed a moderate increment in annual rainfall since the beginning of 1990s. However, total annual rainfall remains significantly below that observed during

5916-511: The Sahelian region resulted in seasonal interaction with and gradual absorption of West African hunter-gatherers, who primarily dwelt in the savannas and forests of West Africa. In West Africa, which may have been a major regional cradle in Africa for the domestication of crops and animals, Niger-Congo speakers domesticated the helmeted guineafowl between 5500 BP and 1300 BP; domestication of field crops occurred throughout various locations in West Africa, such as yams (d. praehensilis) in

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6032-453: The West African regions underwent an increase in the numeracy level throughout the 19th century. The reason for such a growth was predetermined by a number of factors. Namely, the peanut production and trade, which was boosted by the demand of the colonial states . Importantly, the rise of numeracy was higher in the regions which were less hierarchical and had less dependence on the slavery trade (e.g. Sine and Salum). Whereas areas with

6148-435: The archaeology of the city of Kumbi Saleh in modern-day Mauritania, the Mali empire came to dominate much of the region until its defeat by Almoravid invaders in 1052. Three great kingdoms were identified in Bilad al-Sudan by the ninth century. They included Ghana, Gao and Kanem . The Sosso Empire sought to fill the void but was defeated ( c.  1240 ) by the Mandinka forces of Sundiata Keita , founder of

6264-457: The bulk of the Société de Banque du Maghreb (SBM), the Moroccan subsidiary of the former CFAT, while Société Générale Morocco acquired about a fifth of the SBM's activity. BMCE then opened its first overseas branch in Paris in 1972, and listed on the Casablanca Stock Exchange in 1974. In 1975, it absorbed the Banco Español en Marruecos , headquartered in Tétouan , and in 1989 opened BMCE International in Madrid , which in 1993 became part of

6380-419: The city , especially the city center near la Fontaine, desiring more significant political reforms. On 1 November 2023, Casablanca along with Ouarzazate joined UNESCO's Creative Cities Network . Casablanca is located on the Atlantic coast of the Chaouia Plains, which have historically been the breadbasket of Morocco. Apart from the Atlantic coast, the Bouskoura forest is the only natural attraction in

6496-411: The city are 40.5 °C (104.9 °F) and −2.7 °C (27.1 °F), respectively. The highest amount of rainfall recorded in a single day is 178 mm (7.0 in) on 30 November 2010. A 2019 paper published in PLOS One estimated that under Representative Concentration Pathway 4.5 , a "moderate" scenario of climate change where global warming reaches ~2.5–3 °C (4.5–5.4 °F) by 2100,

6612-509: The city hosted an ensemble of progressive African leaders during the Casablanca Conference of 1961 . Among those received by King Muhammad V were Gamal Abd An-Nasser , Kwame Nkrumah , Modibo Keïta , and Ahmed Sékou Touré , Ferhat Abbas . Casablanca was a major departure point for Jews leaving Morocco through Operation Yachin , an operation conducted by Mossad to secretly migrate Moroccan Jews to Israel between November 1961 and spring 1964. The 1965 student protests organized by

6728-400: The city. The forest was planted in the 20th century and consists mostly of eucalyptus , palm , and pine trees. It is located halfway to the city's international airport. The only watercourse in Casablanca is oued Bouskoura , a small seasonal creek that until 1912 reached the Atlantic Ocean near the actual port. Most of oued Bouskoura's bed has been covered due to urbanization and only

6844-427: The climate of Casablanca in the year 2050 would most closely resemble the current climate of Tripoli, Libya . The annual temperature would increase by 1.7 °C (3.1 °F), and the temperature of the warmest month by 1.6 °C (2.9 °F), while the temperature of the coldest month would actually decrease by 0.2 °C (0.36 °F). Moreover, according to the 2022 IPCC Sixth Assessment Report , Casablanca

6960-463: The colony of Guinea-Bissau , while Germany claimed Togoland , but was forced to divide it between France and Britain following First World War due to the Treaty of Versailles . Only Liberia retained its independence, at the price of major territorial concessions. Following World War II , nationalist movements arose across West Africa. In 1957, Ghana, under Kwame Nkrumah , became the first West African colony to achieve its independence, followed

7076-425: The continent, the source of specialized goods such as gold , advanced iron-working , and ivory . After European exploration encountered rich local economies and kingdoms, the Atlantic slave trade built on already existing slave systems to provide labor for colonies in the Americas. After the end of the slave trade in the early 19th century , European nations, especially France and Britain , continued to exploit

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7192-403: The customs office and seize revenue as collateral for loans given by France, that the French holding company La Compagnie Marocaine would develop the port of Casablanca , and that a French-and-Spanish-trained police force would be assembled to patrol the port. To build the port's breakwater, narrow-gauge track was laid in June 1907 for a small Decauville locomotive to connect the port to

7308-425: The demands of women's rights activists. On 16 May 2003, 33 civilians were killed and more than 100 people were injured when Casablanca was hit by a multiple suicide bomb attack carried out by Moroccans and claimed by some to have been linked to al-Qaeda . Twelve suicide bombers struck five locations in the city. Another series of suicide bombings struck the city in early 2007. These events illustrated some of

7424-445: The doctrine of "unconditional surrender", meaning that the Axis powers would be fought until their defeat. Roosevelt also met privately with Sultan Muhammad V and expressed his support for Moroccan independence after the war. This became a turning point, as Moroccan nationalists were emboldened to openly seek complete independence. During the 1940s and 1950s, Casablanca was a major centre of anti-French rioting. On 7 April 1947,

7540-401: The earliest pottery in Africa – by at least 9400 BCE, and along with their pottery, as well as wielding independently invented bows and arrows , migrated into the Central Sahara, which became their primary region of residence by 10,000 BP. The emergence and expansion of ceramics in the Sahara may be linked with the origin of Round Head and Kel Essuf rock art, which occupy rockshelters in

7656-456: The end of colonialism, the region has been the stage for some brutal conflicts, including: Geopolitically , the United Nations definition of subregion Western Africa includes the preceding states with the addition of Mauritania (which withdrew from ECOWAS in 1999), comprising an area of approximately 6.1 million square km. The UN region also includes the United Kingdom Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha in

7772-444: The entire Casablanca waterfront is under development, mainly the construction of huge entertainment centres between the port and Hassan II Mosque, the Anfa Resort project near the business, entertainment and living centre of Megarama, the shopping and entertainment complex of Morocco Mall , as well as a complete renovation of the coastal walkway. The Sindbad park was also renewed with rides, games and entertainment services. Casablanca

7888-493: The foreign shareholders included BCI (16.7 percent), Mouton Roger Group (12.5 percent), Banco di Roma , Bank of America , Bank of West Africa (BWA), Banque Française du Commerce Extérieur , Commerzbank , and Skandinaviska Banken (2.8 percent each); private Moroccan shareholders held an additional 4.2 percent, while the Moroccan government retained 50 percent. In 1965 BWA, acquired that year by Standard Bank , transferred to BMCE its branch in Tangier . In 1971, BMCE took over

8004-579: The fruit and seeds are used for drinks and oils. West Africa is greatly affected by deforestation and has one of the worst deforestation rate. Even "the beloved baobab tree" which is viewed as sacred by some West African cultures are under threat due to climate change , urbanization and population growth. "Huge swaths of forest are being razed to clear space for palm oil and cocoa plantations. Mangroves are being killed off by pollution. Even wispy acacias are hacked away for use in cooking fires to feed growing families." Nigeria, Liberia, Guinea, Ghana and

8120-619: The group, with its equity capital owned by Bank of Africa - BMCE Group (72.41 percent), FMO (9.41 percent), Proparco (3.73 percent), and other shareholders (14.45 percent). The sub-Saharan African country in which BOA held the most assets was Burkina Faso, followed by Ivory Coast and Benin. In total, international activities (outside Morocco) represented 32 percent of the group's consolidated assets at end-2023. Also at end-2023, Bank of Africa - BMCE Group retained direct control of operations in Morocco, while BOA SA had majority-owned subsidiaries in Benin (54.1 percent stake), Burkina Faso (56.5 percent),

8236-443: The help of Spaniards from the nearby emporium. The town was called ad-Dār al-Bayḍāʼ (الدار البيضاء), the Arabic translation of the Portuguese Casa Branca . In the 19th century, the area's population began to grow as it became a major supplier of wool to the booming textile industry in Britain and shipping traffic increased (the British, in return, began importing gunpowder tea , used in Morocco's national drink, mint tea ). By

8352-575: The human population relies. West Africa is west of an imagined north-south axis lying close to 10° east longitude . The Atlantic Ocean forms the western as well as the southern borders of the West African region. The northern border is the Sahara Desert , with the Ranishanu Bend generally considered the northernmost part of the region. The eastern border is less precise, with some placing it at

8468-649: The interconnection of previously isolated railways and the standardization of gauge, brakes, couplings, and other parameters. The first line would connect the cities and ports of Lagos , Cotonou , Lomé and Accra and would allow the largest container ships to focus on a smaller number of large ports, while efficiently serving a larger hinterland . This line connects 3 ft 6 in ( 1,067 mm ) gauge and 1,000 mm ( 3 ft  3 + 3 ⁄ 8  in ) metre gauge systems, which would require four rail dual gauge , which can also provide standard gauge . The Trans–West African Coastal Highway

8584-713: The invasions of Mehdia , Fedhala , and Asfi . American forces captured Casablanca from Vichy control when France surrendered 11 November 1942, but the Naval Battle of Casablanca continued until American forces sank German submarine U-173 on 16 November. Casablanca was the site of the Berrechid Airfield, a large American air base used as the staging area for all American aircraft for the European Theatre of Operations during World War II. The airfield has since become Mohammed V International Airport . Casablanca hosted

8700-612: The largest artificial ports in Africa , and the third-largest port in North Africa , after Tanger-Med (40 km (25 mi) east of Tangier ) and Port Said . Casablanca also hosts the primary naval base for the Royal Moroccan Navy . Casablanca is a significant financial centre , ranking 54th globally in the September 2023 Global Financial Centres Index rankings, between Brussels and Rome . The Casablanca Stock Exchange

8816-434: The legal status of women in the country. About 40,000 women attended, calling for a ban on polygamy and the introduction of divorce law (divorce being a purely religious procedure at that time). Although the counter-demonstration attracted half a million participants, the movement for change started in 2000 was influential on King Mohammed VI , and he enacted a new mudawana , or family law, in early 2004, meeting some of

8932-489: The legend of the Sufi saint and merchant Allal al-Qairawani , who supposedly came from Tunisia and settled in Casablanca with his wife Lalla al-Baiḍāʾ ( لالة البيضاء White Lady ). The villagers of Mediouna would reportedly provision themselves at "Dar al-Baiḍāʾ" ( دار البيضاء House of the White ). In fact, on a low hill slightly inland above the ruins of Anfa and just to the west of today's city centre, it appears there

9048-696: The local government, it also created a specialized mortgage bank in Cotonou , the Banque de l'Habitat du Benin (BHB), which however did not develop as significantly as initially envisaged. In 2010, BOA opened a subsidiary in France, developing from an earlier representative office opened in Paris in 2000. In 2008, Luxembourg-based AFH, the parent company of the Bank of Africa Group, rebranded itself into Bank of Africa Group S.A., and BMCE took

9164-609: The mid-17th to the late 18th century, holding sway not only over most of the other kingdoms in Yorubaland , but also over nearby African states, notably the Fon Kingdom of Dahomey in the modern Republic of Benin to the west. The Benin Empire was a post-classical empire located in what is now southern Nigeria . Its capital was Edo, now known as Benin City , Edo . It should not be confused with

9280-474: The modern-day country called Benin , formerly called Dahomey . The Benin Empire was "one of the oldest and most highly developed states in the coastal hinterland of West Africa, dating perhaps to the eleventh century CE". The Benin Empire was governed by a sovereign Emperor with hundreds of thousands of soldiers and a powerful council rich in resources, wealth, ancient science and technology with cities described as beautiful and large as Haarlem . " Olfert Dapper ,

9396-638: The new Mali Empire. The Mali Empire continued to flourish for several centuries, most particularly under Sundiata's grandnephew Musa I , before a succession of weak rulers led to its collapse under Mossi , Tuareg and Songhai invaders. In the 15th century, the Songhai would form a new dominant state based on Gao , in the Songhai Empire , under the leadership of Sonni Ali and Askia Mohammed . Meanwhile, south of Sudan, strong city-states arose in Igboland , such as

9512-505: The next year by France's colonies (Guinea in 1958 under the leadership of President Ahmed Sekou Touré); by 1974, West Africa's nations were entirely autonomous. Since independence, many West African nations have been submerged under political instability, with notable civil wars in Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Ivory Coast, and a succession of military coups in Ghana and Burkina Faso . Since

9628-573: The north; the second, the Iron Age empires that consolidated both intra-Africa, and extra-Africa trade, and developed centralized states; third, major polities flourished, which would undergo an extensive history of contact with non-Africans; fourth, the colonial period, in which Great Britain and France controlled nearly the entire region; and fifth, the post-independence era, in which the current nations were formed. West African populations were considerably mobile and interacted with one another throughout

9744-484: The number of registered trawlers operating in African waters, increase the monitoring and control and set up regional fisheries organizations. Some steps have already been taken in the form of WARFP (the World Bank's West Africa Regional Fisheries Program which empowers west-African countries (i.e. Liberia, Sierra Leone, Cape Verde, and Senegal) with information, training and monitoring systems. Furthermore, Liberia enacted

9860-449: The opposite trends illustrated opposite tendencies (e.g. central and northern Senegal). Those patterns were further even more stimulated by the French colonial campaign. Britain controlled the Gambia, Sierra Leone, Ghana, and Nigeria throughout the colonial era, while France unified Senegal, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, Benin, Ivory Coast, and Niger into French West Africa . Portugal founded

9976-626: The part south of El Jadida road can now be seen. The closest permanent river to Casablanca is Oum Rabia , 70 km (43.50 mi) to the south-east. Casablanca has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate ( Köppen climate classification Csa ). The cool Canary Current off the Atlantic coast moderates temperature variation, which results in a climate remarkably similar to that of coastal Los Angeles , with similar temperature ranges. The city has an annual average of 72 days with significant precipitation, which amounts to 412 mm (16.2 in) per year. The highest and lowest temperatures ever recorded in

10092-632: The persistent challenges the city faces in addressing poverty and integrating disadvantaged neighborhoods and populations. One initiative to improve conditions in the city's disadvantaged neighborhoods was the creation of the Sidi Moumen Cultural Center . As calls for reform spread through the Arab world in 2011, Moroccans joined in, but concessions by the ruler led to acceptance. However, in December, thousands of people demonstrated in several parts of

10208-400: The population has been affected by five or more floods in the 17 Sahel region countries. In 2012, severe drought conditions in the Sahel were reported. Governments in the region responded quickly, launching strategies to address the issue. The region is projected to experience changes in rainfall regime, with climate models suggesting that decreases in wet season rainfall are more likely in

10324-606: The population of Casablanca. A 1937-1938 typhoid fever outbreak was exploited by colonial authorities to justify the appropriation of urban spaces in Casablanca. Moroccans residing in informal housing were cleared out of the center and displaced, notably to Carrières Centrales . After Philippe Pétain of France signed the armistice with the Nazis , he ordered French troops in France's colonial empire to defend French territory against any aggressors— Allied or otherwise—applying

10440-469: The pressure for economic development, many of these ecologies are threatened by processes like deforestation , biodiversity loss , overfishing , pollution from mining , plastics and other industries, and extreme changes resulting from climate change in West Africa . The history of West Africa can be divided into five major periods: first, its prehistory, in which the first human settlers arrived, developed agriculture , and made contact with peoples to

10556-688: The price of necessities such as butter, sugar, wheat flour, and cooking oil following a period of severe drought. Hassan II appointed the French-trained interior minister Driss Basri as hardliner, who would later become a symbol of the Years of Lead , with quelling the protests. The government stated that 66 people were killed and 100 were injured, while opposition leaders put the number of dead at 637, saying that many of these were killed by police and army gunfire. In March 2000, more than 60 women's groups organized demonstrations in Casablanca proposing reforms to

10672-447: The region through colonial relationships . For example, they continued exporting a number of extractive goods , including labor-intensive agricultural crops like cocoa and coffee , forestry products like tropical timber , and mineral resources like gold. Since independence, many West African countries, like Ivory Coast , Ghana , Nigeria and Senegal , have played important roles in the regional and global economies. West Africa has

10788-512: The region's wildlife populations, there are still some protected nature reserves within the region. Some of these include: West Africa is also home to several baobab trees and other plant life . Some baobab trees are several centuries old and form part of the local folklore, for example, a mythical baobab tree named Ngoye njuli in Senegal which is regarded as a sacred site by the Serer . The tree itself

10904-453: The rest is "heavily fragmented and in a degraded state, being poorly used." Overfishing is a major issue in West Africa. Besides reducing fish stocks in the region, it also threatens food security and the livelihoods of many coastal communities that largely depend on artisanal fishing . The overfishing generally comes from foreign trawlers operating in the region. To combat the overfishing, Greenpeace has recommended countries reduce

11020-708: The same regions (e.g., Djado , Acacus , Tadrart ). Hunters in the Central Sahara farmed, stored, and cooked undomesticated central Saharan flora , underwent domestication of antelope , and domesticated and shepherded Barbary sheep . After the Kel Essuf Period and Round Head Period of the Central Sahara, the Pastoral Period followed. Some of the hunter-gatherers who created the Round Head rock art may have adopted pastoral culture, and others may have not. As

11136-413: The sea", ifni "sandy beach", or anfa "threshing floor"—although he determined the available information insufficient to establish exactly which. The name "Anfa" was used in maps until around 1830—in some until 1851—which Adam attributes to the tendency of cartographers to replicate previous maps. When Sultan Mohammed ben Abdallah ( c.  1710 –1790) rebuilt the city after its destruction in

11252-859: The south Atlantic Ocean . In the United Nations scheme of African regions , the region of Western Africa includes 16 states and the United Kingdom Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha : Mali , Burkina Faso , Senegal and the Niger are mostly in the Sahel , a transition zone between the Sahara desert and the Sudanian Savanna ; Benin , Ivory Coast , The Gambia , Ghana , Guinea , Guinea-Bissau , Liberia , Sierra Leone , Togo and Nigeria compose most of Guinea ,

11368-528: The subsequent expansion of the West African forest . West African hunter-gatherers occupied western Central Africa (e.g., Shum Laka ) earlier than 32,000 BP, dwelled throughout coastal West Africa by 12,000 BP, and migrated northward between 12,000 BP and 8000 BP as far as Mali, Burkina Faso, and Mauritania. During the Holocene , Niger-Congo speakers independently created pottery in Ounjougou , Mali –

11484-505: The time of Moroccan independence , the new country's banking system was dominated by French banks, namely the Banque Commerciale du Maroc controlled by Crédit Industriel et Commercial and the local operations of Banque Nationale pour le Commerce et l'Industrie , Crédit Lyonnais , and Société Générale as well as Algeria -centric Compagnie Algérienne and Crédit Foncier d'Algérie et de Tunisie (CFAT). The creation of BMCE in 1959

11600-489: The total casualties are as high as 15,000 dead and wounded. In the immediate aftermath of the bombardment and the deployment of French troops, the European homes and the Mellah , or Jewish quarter, were sacked, and the latter was also set ablaze. As Oujda had already been occupied, the bombardment and military invasion of the city opened a western front to the French military conquest of Morocco . French control of Casablanca

11716-486: The town became an independent state once again, and emerged as a safe harbour for pirates and privateers . The Portuguese consequently bombarded the town into ruins in 1468. The town that grew up around it was called Casa Branca, meaning "white house" in Portuguese . The town was finally rebuilt between 1756 and 1790 by Sultan Mohammed ben Abdallah , the grandson of Moulay Ismail and an ally of George Washington , with

11832-649: The traditional name for the area near the Gulf of Guinea ; Mauritania lies in the Maghreb , the northwestern region of Africa that has historically been inhabited by West African groups such as the Fulani , Soninke , Wolof , Serer and Toucouleur people , along with Arab-Berber Maghrebi people such as the Tuareg ; Cape Verde is an island country in the Atlantic Ocean ; and Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha consists of eight main islands located in four different parts of

11948-463: The western Maghreb) is composed of semi-arid terrain known as Sahel , a transitional zone between the Sahara and the West Sudanian savanna . Forests form a belt between the savannas and the southern coast, ranging from 160 km to 240 km in width. The northwest African region of Mauritania periodically suffers country-wide plagues of locusts which consume water, salt and crops on which

12064-545: The western Sahel, and increases more likely in the central to east Sahel, although opposite trends cannot yet be ruled out. These trends will affect the frequency and severity of floods, droughts, desertification , sand and dust storms, desert locust plagues and water shortages. However, irrespective of the changes in seasonal mean rain, the most intense storms are expected to become more intense, amplifying flood frequency. Enhanced carbon emissions and global warming may also lead to an increase in dry spells especially across

12180-658: The year 2050. Additionally, RCP 8.5 combined with the hypothetical impact from marine ice sheet instability at high levels of warming would involve up to US$ 137.5 billion in damages, while the additional accounting for the "low-probability, high-damage events" may increase aggregate risks to US$ 187 billion for the "moderate" RCP4.5, US$ 206 billion for RCP8.5 and US$ 397 billion under the high-end ice sheet instability scenario. Since sea level rise would continue for about 10,000 years under every scenario of climate change, future costs of sea level rise would only increase, especially without adaptation measures. The Grand Casablanca region

12296-507: Was a Yoruba empire of what is today Western, North Central Nigeria and Southern Republic of Benin . Established in the 14th century, the Oyo Empire grew to become one of the largest West African states. It rose through the outstanding organizational skills of the Yoruba, wealth gained from trade and its powerful cavalry . The Oyo Empire was the most politically important state in the region from

12412-486: Was a white-washed structure, possibly a Sufi zawiya that acted as a landmark to sailors. The Portuguese cartographer Duarte Pacheco wrote in the early 16th century that the city could easily be identified by a tower, and nautical guides from the late 19th century still mentioned a "white tower" as a point of reference. The Portuguese mariners calqued the modern Arabic name to "Casa Branca" ( [kazɐ'bɾɐ̃kɐ] White House ) in place of Anfa. The name "Casablanca"

12528-625: Was conquered by the Almoravids in 1068. After the defeat of the Barghawata in the 12th century, Arab tribes of Hilal and Sulaym descent settled in the region, mixing with the local Berbers, which led to widespread Arabization . During the 14th century, under the Merinids , Anfa rose in importance as a port. The last of the Merinids were ousted by a popular revolt in 1465. In the early 15th century,

12644-535: Was established in Luxembourg as a holding company for BOA Mali and operations to be added in other African countries. The objectives of AFH were to promote the establishment of banking subsidiaries across Africa, with local capital participation as a key component and to offer both management, technical support as well as equity participation in these new banking subsidiaries. To increase their capital base, AFH then took on new investors including Proparco (an affiliate of

12760-552: Was formalized March 1912 when the Treaty of Fes established the French Protectorat . Under French imperial control, Casablanca became a port of colonial extraction. Right at the beginning of the twentieth century when Morocco was officially declared a French protectorate, the French decided to shift power to Morocco's coastal areas (i.e. Rabat and Casablanca) at the expense of its interior areas (i.e. Fez and Marrakech). Rabat

12876-457: Was formed to address the scarcity of banking services for local businesses and individuals, which was prevalent not only in Mali at that time, but across most of Francophone West Africa . This initial effort was without any external financial backing. The initial success of BOA led to the group gradual expansion and reorganization away from its Malian origins. In 1988, African Financial Holdings (AFH)

12992-493: Was left of the local wildlife, but by that time, it was too late. During the 1930s, the elephant population in the Gold Coast was about 300, and Sierra Leone between 500 and 600. Although a small number of elephants survived in Nigeria, hunting, agricultural expansion and clearing of forest in that country drastically affected its wildlife population, particularly elephants. Despite the historical damage that has been done to

13108-437: Was made the administrative capital of the country and Casablanca its economic capital. General Hubert Lyautey assigned the planning of the new colonial port city to Henri Prost . As he did in other Moroccan cities, Prost designed a European ville nouvelle outside the walls of the medina . In Casablanca, he also designed a new " ville indigène " to house Moroccans arriving from other cities. Europeans formed almost half

13224-422: Was the first step in a decades-long process, known locally as marocanisation , of reduction of that colonial legacy. BMCE was established in 1959 as a government-owned commercial entity and in 1962 opened its capital to foreign strategic investors, the main one being Banca Commerciale Italiana (BCI) which had been present in Morocco since 1928 and brought BMCE its network of branches in the country. By late 1962,

13340-701: Was then a calque of the Portuguese name when the Spanish took over trade through the Iberian Union . During the French protectorate in Morocco , the name remained Casablanca ( pronounced [kazablɑ̃ka] ). Today, Moroccans still call the city Casablanca or Casa for short, or by its Arabic name, pronounced d-Dār l-Biḍā in Moroccan Arabic or ad-Dāru-l-Bayḍā' in Standard Arabic . The area that

13456-604: Was then succeeded by the Ghana Empire that first flourished roughly between the 2nd and 12th centuries C.E., which later gave way to the Mali Empire . In current-day Mauritania, there exist archaeological sites in the towns of Tichit and Oualata that were initially constructed around 2000 B.C., and were found to have originated from the Soninke branch of the Mandé peoples . Also, based on

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