Morocco’s King Mohammed VI called on Sunday on the government to do more to address the country’s social and economic problems, as the North African country struggles with social disparities.
King Mohammed VI celebrated 19 years on the Moroccan throne on Sunday. He delivered a speech from the north-western Rif region in the city of Al Hoceima, where popular protests erupted in 2016.
“True patriotism enhances unity and solidarity, especially in testing circumstances… Moroccan patriots are not affected by the vicissitudes of life, however harsh they may sometimes be. These hardships enhance their faith and increase their resolve to tackle difficulties and rise to challenges.
"I am confident that Moroccans will not allow the advocates of chaos and nihilism or the peddlers of misconceptions to exploit certain deficiencies in order to encroach upon Morocco’s security and stability and belittle its gains and achievements,” he said.
"The commemoration of "Throne Day", which today marks the nineteenth anniversary of my accession to the throne, is testament to the allegiance binding me to you, and to the mutual covenant between us to remain forever faithful to Morocco’s sacred, immutable values and to make whatever sacrifices are needed for its unity and stability.”
“We shall continue to move forward together and work hand in hand to overcome transient as well as objective hurdles and bring about conditions that allow us to continue implementing development programs and projects, create jobs and provide for a dignified life,” he said.
The king called on the government to adopt a set of provisional social measures and inform him regularly on the progress made. He recommended laying emphasis on urgent initiatives in the following areas, saying:
"• Firstly, we need to give a strong impetus to school enrollment programs and combat school drop-out as of the next school year. These include the Tayssir program on school enrollment support, early childhood education, school transportation, school canteens and boarding schools.
The above measures are designed to ease the burden on families and to provide them with support to make sure their children continue to attend school and training programs.
• Secondly, we need to launch the third phase of the National Initiative for Human Development by building on achievements, refocusing programs to promote human resource development and serve the coming generations, supporting groups in difficult situations and starting a new generation of income-generating activities that create jobs.
• Thirdly, we need to tackle the inconsistencies affecting the implementation of the ‘RAMED’ health coverage program and undertake, concurrently, a thorough review of the national health system, which is characterized by blatant disparities and poor management.
• Fourthly, we need to speed up a successful outcome of the social dialogue. In this regard, I call upon the social stakeholders concerned to keep in mind the nation’s best interests, show a keen sense of responsibility and seek consensus in order to develop a balanced, long-lasting social charter that guarantees the competitiveness of businesses while increasing the purchasing power of the working class in both the public and the private sectors.”
The King stated that citizens can be provided with a more dignified lifestyle and social protection if more jobs and opportunities are offered to them. However, this cannot happen without investment and support for the nation’s producing sector.
The King recommended that the government adopt measures to implement an administrative decentralization plan no later than the end of October. The plan, according to the King, should enable the officials to make more effective decisions and implement development programs to help combat social issues.
He also recommended the following: “We need to speed up the adoption of the new investment charter; implement the reform of regional investment centers; give the latter the powers they need to carry out their mission, including the possibility for the majority of attending members to make decisions, instead of applying the current rule of unanimous decision-making; group all investment commissions into a single regional investment commission in order to put an end to obstacles and to the excuses made by certain ministries.
“We need to adopt legislation stipulating: on the one hand, a maximum one-month period within which a number of government agencies would have to respond to investment-related requests, stressing that if no answer is given within the time prescribed, it will be taken to mean that the government agency concerned has given its approval; And, on the other hand, that no government agency shall require documents or information available at another government institution. Government agencies will coordinate and exchange information, using modern computer-based technology to this end,” he added.
The king continued, “I hope these crucial measures will provide a strong, unprecedented incentive to boost investment, create job opportunities, improve the quality of services offered to citizens and reduce foot-dragging which, as all Moroccans know, leads to corruption… These measures will also serve as a catalyst for the reform of the civil service, making it possible to hold officials to account and to identify the hurdles impeding the reform.”
“Our goal is to make sure Moroccan businesses – particularly small and medium-sized enterprises – are competitive and capable of exporting goods and services as well as creating jobs. Indeed, SMEs require special attention since they constitute 95 percent of our economic fabric,” he continued.
The kind added: “Today, the State and society need to place more trust in productive businesses so that we may once again reach the desired investment levels and move from a negative wait-and-see attitude to an innovative, entrepreneurial frame of mind… Economic revitalization continues to depend on the extent of businesses’ involvement in development, on the revamping of the corporate culture and on the proper use of Morocco’s numerous assets, keeping in mind the international competitive landscape, even the occasional trade war.”
He concluded: “Morocco – its past, present, and future – is a sacred trust which we must all seek to preserve. We have accomplished so much together, in various fields.
"In fact, we cannot rise to challenges and fulfill our aspirations unless we are united and committed to solidarity and stability, have faith in our common destiny – in good times and bad – and embrace the spirit of genuine patriotism and responsible citizenship.
"Given the developments currently taking place in our country, we do need to remain committed to our longstanding religious and national values. We should remember the sacrifices made by our forefathers so that Morocco could remain a united, sovereign and dignified nation.”
