The different measures and actions undertaken by Morocco to strengthen the pillars of the social state were highlighted on June 6 in Cairo, at the second session of the Ministerial Conference on Social Development of the Member States of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).
Intervening at this two-day conference, held under the theme “Social Justice and Community Security,” Moroccan Minister of Solidarity, Social Integration, and Family, Awatif Hayar, underlined that Morocco, under the Enlightened Leadership of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, has undertaken a series of economic and social measures to improve conditions for its citizens and strengthen the pillars of the social state.
In this regard, Hayar cited the drafting of the new Development Model, which emphasizes investment in human capital, and intensified efforts by all institutions to achieve convergence of sectoral policies to provide efficient public services and economic dynamism and create social and spatial justice across the Kingdom.
The Moroccan minister added that the project to generalize social protection, launched by His Majesty the King, is one of the Kingdom’s major projects and a social revolution aimed at consolidating social cohesion and supporting the most vulnerable through the generalization of social protection to all citizens by 2025.
In this regard, Hayar affirmed that the Moroccan government has achieved significant progress in implementing the social protection project, noting that it has succeeded in generalizing compulsory health insurance benefits to allow all Moroccans to benefit from health insurance.
The Minister further added that the social protection measures also include the extension of family allowances to almost seven million schoolchildren which would benefit three million families by the end of 2023.
Hayar also stated that in order to ensure optimal targeting of families suffering from poverty and vulnerability to benefit from several programs, the Unified Social Register (RSU), an effective targeting mechanism aimed at strengthening the pillars of the social state, was adopted, noting that the government program is committed to strengthening the pillars of the social state and has set as one of its main objectives to help one million families to overcome their vulnerable situation and to promote women’s economic activity by 2026.
In this respect, the Minister recalled that Morocco has established the National Commission for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment and drafted a strategic framework for equality and parity by 2035.
Within this framework, Hayar added that the Ministry of Solidarity, Social Integration, and Family has developed the “Jisr” strategy and implemented its three axes, namely the development of an intelligent and inclusive social environment, the promotion of equality and leadership programs for women, and the support of family cohesion, through several integrated programs on family protection, the economic empowerment of women, the protection of children against all forms of violence, the protection of the elderly and the promotion of the rights of people with disabilities.
The government official stated that the Ministry of Solidarity has also established a training framework for social workers in sufficient numbers to care for the homebound elderly, the disabled, and people in need of care in order to ease the load on families and women, which contributes to liberating them and boosting their participation in several political, economic, social, and cultural fields
In a similar context, the Moroccan minister recalled that the Moroccan Constitution attributes special emphasis on promoting the rights of people with disabilities, prohibiting disability discrimination, and enshrining the political, social, economic, and cultural rights of people with special needs, adding that through the ratification of the International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and its Optional Protocol, Morocco is committed to promoting the process of social participation of people with disabilities.
On this occasion, Hayar praised the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) for its major efforts to establish cooperation mechanisms between member states in order to create greater cooperation opportunities to protect all rights, as set out in the International Covenant on Economic, Cultural, and Social Rights (ICESCR).
The Moroccan delegation to the Ministerial Conference on Social Development is led by Morocco’s Ambassador to Egypt and Permanent Representative to the Arab League, Ahmed Tazi, accompanied by the Director of Social Development at the Ministry of Solidarity, Social Integration and the Family, Rachid El Kdida.
This conference brings together ministers in charge of social development of the member states of the Organization of International Cooperation (OIC), representatives of the organization’s competent bodies and institutions, and representatives of several regional and international organizations.
During the second session, member states and institutions of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) are set to review initiatives undertaken to combat child abuse and labor, strengthen the institution of marriage and family, and promote care, social security, and social integration of the elderly and people with special needs.
The second Ministerial Conference for Social Development is part of the implementation of the decisions of the Council of Foreign Ministers and the first Conference held on December 9, 2019, in Istanbul, Turkey.