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Several measures have been taken to mitigate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this context, almost all non-essential activities in Morocco have been halted since March 20, 2020. From that date, Morocco announced the lockdown for one month and it was extended until June 10, 2020. The main objective of this paper is to study the effects of the lockdown measures on air quality, by analyzing dust PM 2.5 , NO 2 , and O 3 . The dust PM 2.5 analysis was carried out from 2016 to 2020. NO 2 and O 3 analysis was carried out in 2019 and 2020. This study, which is based on satellite data from TROPOMI Sentinel 5P and MERRA, has shown that Morocco has experienced an improvement in air quality during the lockdown. A significant reduction in surface dust PM 2.5 and tropospheric NO 2 was observed (-10%, -4% respectively on average). The total column of ozone recorded a slight increase on average of around 1%. Moreover, we demonstrate that a significant part of particulate pollution and NO2 emissions are incoming mainly from the northern and northern-eastern borders of Morocco.

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Purpose of Review The aim of this review is to summarize and provide clear insights into studies that evaluate the interaction between air pollution, climate, and health in North Africa. Recent Findings Few studies have estimated the effects of climate and air pollution on health in North Africa. Most of the studies highlighted the evidence of the link between climate and air pollution as driving factors and increased mortality and morbidity as health outcomes. Each North African country prioritized research on a specific health factor. It was observed that the health outcome from each driving factor depends on the studied area and data availability. The latter is a major challenge in the region. As such, more studies should be led in the future to cover more areas in North Africa and when more data are available. Data availability will help to explore the applicability of different tools and techniques new to the region. Summary This review explores studies related to climate and air pollution, and their possible impacts on health in North Africa. On one hand, air quality studies have focused mainly on particulate matter exceedance levels and their long-term exposure impacts, namely, morbidity and mortality. The observed differences between the various studies are mainly due to the used exposure–response function, the studied population, background emissions, and natural emission from the Sahara Desert that characterize the region. On the other hand, climate studies have focused primarily on the impact of heat waves, vector-borne disease, and mental disorders. More than half of these studies have been on leishmaniasis disease. The review revealed unbalanced and insufficient research on health impacts from air pollution episodes and climate extremes across the region.

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