The spiritual capital of the Kingdom has been named a winner of the sixth edition of the Mayors Challenge, an international competition organized by Bloomberg Philanthropies aimed at encouraging cities to develop innovative solutions to improve citizens’ quality of life.

According to a statement issued by the municipality, the Idrisid city will receive $1 million in funding to implement an innovative project focused on integrating informal waste pickers into the formal sector through a sustainable, inclusive model based on the circular economy.

The President of the Municipal Council of Fes, Abdellah El Bakkali, welcomed the recognition, noting that Fes was selected among 24 cities from around twenty countries as part of the 2025–2026 edition of the international competition.

This international distinction recognizes the city’s efforts in urban innovation. In addition to financial support, the foundation will provide technical assistance to help implement and scale up the winning project, which focuses on organizing waste collectors into cooperatives and strengthening the circular economy through a sustainable socio-economic and environmental approach.

The project aims to ensure decent working conditions for waste pickers, including stable income, social protection, training in circular economy practices, and occupational safety. The goal is to position them as key actors and partners within the city’s cleanliness and recycling ecosystem.

It also includes the establishment of source-separation collection and sorting points across all neighborhoods, equipped with color-coded bins dedicated to recyclable waste and managed by cooperative-affiliated collectors. Public awareness campaigns targeting residents, schools, and economic stakeholders will promote waste sorting at source and responsible environmental behavior.

Designed through a participatory approach involving citizens, schools, and economic actors, the project will be implemented under the supervision of the Municipality of Fes, in coordination with institutional partners and waste management stakeholders. It is expected to generate tangible impacts, including the socio-economic integration of waste pickers, improved city attractiveness, and enhanced transparency in monitoring the social and environmental impact of waste collection and sorting processes.

This year, the Mayors Challenge selected 24 cities from more than 630 applicants worldwide. Each winning city receives $1 million along with technical support to bring its innovative project to life.