After the defeat of the Islamists, Morocco has a new government – archyworldys

The King of Morocco Mohammed VI appointed, Thursday, October 7, a new government, led by Aziz Akhannouch, considered close to the Palace, which will have as a priority to redress the kingdom faced with the health crisis linked to Covid-19 and to deep social inequalities.

In this team made up largely of technocrats, the holders of the royal ministries are renewed. Thus, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nasser Bourita, is retained in his functions in a context of regional tensions, in particular with Algeria. Abdelouafi Laftit keeps the portfolio from the inside. With 24 ministers, this new cabinet also has seven women against four in the outgoing government.

Arrived leading the legislative elections of September 8, the three parties of the government majority – the National Rally of Independents (RNI) of Mr. Akhannouch, the Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM), both of liberal tendency, and the Istiqlal Party (PI, center-right ) – share the portfolios.

RNI to strategic portfolios

Big winner of the ballot, the RNI retains the strategic positions of agriculture – where succeeds Mr. Akhannouch, his number two in the ministry, Mohamed Sadiki – and of the economy, with Nadia Fettah, former minister of tourism. He also obtains the ministry of health, with Nabila Rmili, also new mayor of Casablanca, economic capital. Aziz Akhannouch’s party, described as a trusted man of the Royal Household, raided the House of Representatives during the legislative elections, grabbing 102 of the 395 seats and dislodging the Islamists in power for a decade.

The PAM, founded by a royal advisor, Fouad Ali El Himma, inherits justice and regional planning. As for the Istiqlal (“Independence”), the oldest party in Morocco, founded in the 1940s, it inherited the posts of equipment and industry. National education, the target of criticism and in search of in-depth reform, falls to the current Moroccan ambassador to France, Chakib Benmoussa.

This former Minister of the Interior is also chairman of the commission, mandated by the monarch, which drew up the new development model (NMD), a political pact establishing the socio-economic priorities of the kingdom. This roadmap aims to respond to the slowdown in growth and reduce the deep inequalities that afflict Morocco. It aims to double the gross domestic product (GDP) per capita by 2035.

The new government faces challenges

The Akhannouch government will have to face the heavy repercussions of the health crisis linked to the Covid-19 pandemic: the economy contracted by 7% in 2020, the unemployment rate jumped to 11.9% the same year and social disparities have widened, according to official reports. The executive will also have the mission of carrying out the ambitious project of generalization of medical coverage for 22 million Moroccans (out of nearly 36 million) by 2025 as announced by the sovereign in 2020. Many Moroccans do not do not have the means to access healthcare in the private sector, at high costs, while public services leave much to be desired.

Head of the RNI since 2016, Mr. Akhannouch will present his program in the coming days before the House of Representatives in order to obtain his confidence, a formality, as required by the Constitution. Discreet, Aziz Akhannouch has one of the largest fortunes in Morocco, estimated at two billion dollars according to the specialized magazine Forbes.

In the past, it has come under heavy criticism for collusion between business and politics. This businessman runs a sprawling holding company, Akwa Group, which operates mainly in hydrocarbons and real estate. The day after his appointment as head of government, he announced his withdrawal from “Any management” of the family holding company.

In 2011, in the context of the “Arab Spring”, Morocco adopted a new Constitution granting broad prerogatives to Parliament and the government, closer to the standards of the parliamentary monarchy, while devoting a central role to the king, from which emanates major decisions and orientations in key sectors.