HM King Mohammed VI Chairs Council of Ministers

Rabat - HM King Mohammed VI, accompanied by HRH Crown Prince Moulay El Hassan, chaired, on Monday at the Royal Palace in Rabat, a Council of Ministers, during which the general guidelines of amending the 2020 appropriation bill were examined in addition to the approval of several draft laws, a draft decree and several international agreements, said a press release read out by spokesperson of the Royal Palace Abdelhak Lamrini. At the start of the Council, HM the King asked the Minister of Health about the development of the epidemiological situation, especially after the lifting of quarantine restrictions. The Minister of Health said that the epidemiological situation is stable with a high degree of vigilance and that the majority of affected people are asymptomatic. He also clarified that despite the lifting of quarantine restrictions, the fatality rate remained low and the number of critical cases is small and that the increase in the number of people recently infected is mainly explained by the broadening of collective early screenings, the intensification of consultations and the monitoring of contact persons. He added that a national scientific commission is overseeing the evolution of this epidemic and putting in place the necessary treatments and protocols. Subsequently, and in accordance with the provisions of Article 49 of the Constitution, the Minister of the Economy, Finance and Administration Reform gave a presentation on the General Guidelines of this bill, in which he cited the international and national contexts, marked mainly by the repercussions of the Covid-19 pandemic, which imposed recourse to the first amended appropriation bill within the framework of the new organic appropriation bill. In this context, the pillars on which the general guidelines of the amended 2020 appropriation bill are based were presented, which are: 1 - Support for the gradual recovery of economic activity; 2 - Preservation of employment; 3 - Acceleration of the implementation of administration reforms; Pillar I: Support for the gradual recovery of economic activity through: - The implementation, within the framework of sectoral agreements, of measures taking into account the specificities of each sector, in relation to the magnitude of the impact suffered following the crisis and the time necessary for the resumption of activity. - The allocation of funds necessary to cover the risks of guaranteed loans for the benefit of all business segments, including public enterprises. Advantageous Conditions will be applied through a maximum interest rate not exceeding 3.5%, and a repayment period of 7 years, with two years of grace and a State guarantee varying between 80% and 90% and up to 95% for very small businesses. - Promotion of public investment in order to accelerate the revitalization of the national economy. Pillar II: Preservation of employment in the private sector through: - Allocating resources from the Special Fund for the Coronavirus Pandemic Management to continue, until the end of the year, to provide social and economic support to the sectors which will face difficulties even after the lifting of restrictions. - Activating specific support for the various sectors, within a contractual framework, with the economic players concerned, by supporting economic recovery on the condition of preserving more than 80% of employees declared to the National Social Security Fund (CNSS) and rapidly regularizing the situation of undeclared employees. Pillar III: Accelerating the implementation of administration reforms. It concerns: - The implementation of the provisions of the law relating to the simplification of procedures and administrative formalities, in particular those relating to compliance with maximum deadlines for responding to investment requests; - Accelerating the implementation of the Public Service Charter; - The fostering of transparency and efficiency in the services rendered to citizens and investors, through support for the digital transformation of the administration and the generalization of digital services; - Speeding up the implementation of the national financial inclusion strategy, in particular through the encouragement and generalization of payment by mobile phone. At the end of his presentation, the Minister mentioned the hypotheses of the amended 2020 appropriation bill, which provides for a 5% decline in GDP and a budget deficit of 7.5%. It was pointed out that all the broad lines of this bill are essentially aimed at rapidly overcoming the economic and social impact of the Covid-19 pandemic crisis. Subsequently, HM the King, Supreme Commander and Chief of General Staff of the Royal Armed Forces (FAR), agreed to approve, during this Council of Ministers, three bills and a draft decree relating to the military field. The first project concerns cybersecurity and aims to establish a legal framework making it possible to reinforce the security of the information systems of the State's administrations, the territorial authorities, the public establishments and companies and any other legal person of public law, as well as telecommunications operators. The project also provides for specific safety rules applicable to infrastructure of vital importance. The second bill concerns defense and security materials and equipment, weapons and ammunition. It aims to supervise the activities of manufacturing, trade, import, export, transport and transit of these materials and equipment, through the establishment of an authorization system for the practice of these activities and a document tracking and control system by immediately verifying the holders of authorizations in this area. The third project amends the law relating to the FAR reserve army and aims to integrate among the reserve officers, the executives of Establishments and Companies having received initial training within an establishment under the Royal Armed Forces. The draft decree is related to the reorganization of the Royal Air School and aims to enable national air transport companies to benefit from the expertise of the Royal Armed Forces in matters of aeronautical training, by enabling the Royal Air Schools to train airline pilots of national companies, and this within a contractual framework between the Administration of National Defense and the national companies of air transport. As part of the strengthening of Morocco's bilateral relations, the consolidation of its place and its continental and international presence and the honoring of its international commitments, the Council of Ministers approved 11 international, bilateral and multilateral agreements, 9 of which are backed by laws. The bilateral agreements are related in particular to an agreement establishing an association between the Kingdom of Morocco and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the addendum to the partnership agreement for cultural cooperation and development between the government of the Kingdom of Morocco and the government of the French Republic, as well as the strengthening of cooperation with certain brotherly and friendly countries in the commercial, economic, judicial, technical, scientific and cultural fields, in addition to the military and technical fields. The multilateral agreements concern the treaty establishing the African Medicine Agency and the multilateral agreement between competent authorities concerning the automatic exchange of information relating to financial accounts. In accordance with the provisions of Article 49 of the Constitution and on the proposal of the Head of Government and at the initiative of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans Abroad, HM the King has appointed the Secretary General of the Ministry and His Majesty's Ambassadors.

They are: Mounia Boucetta: Ambassador, Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans Abroad; Africa - Hassan Naciri, His Majesty's Ambassador to the Republic of Senegal; - Driss Isbayene, His Majesty's Ambassador to the Republic of Mali; - Zakaria Koumiri, His Majesty's Ambassador to the United Republic of Tanzania; - Abderrazzak Laassel, His Majesty's Ambassador to the Republic of Kenya; - Issam Taib, His Majesty's Ambassador to the Republic of Guinea; Arab World - Mohamed Hamzaoui, His Majesty's Ambassador to the State of the United Arab Emirates; - Ali Benaissa, His Majesty's Ambassador to the State of Kuwait; - Mohamed Ait Ouali, His Majesty's Ambassador to the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria; - Abderrahim Mouziane, His Majesty's Ambassador, Head of the Representation Office of the Kingdom of Morocco in Ramallah; Europe - Karim Medrek, His Majesty's Ambassador to the Kingdom of Sweden; - Mohamed Sbihi, His Majesty's Ambassador to the Hellenic Republic (Greece); - Hakim Hajoui, His Majesty's Ambassador to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; - Nabila Freidji, His Majesty's Ambassador to the Kingdom of Norway; Latin America - Hicham Dehane, His Majesty's Ambassador to the Dominican Republic; - Hicham Elaloui, His Majesty's Ambassador to the Republic of Cuba; - Bouchra Kadiri Boudchich, His Majesty's Ambassador to the Republic of Panama; Asia and Oceania - Wissane Zailachi, His Majesty's Ambassador to the Commonwealth of Australia;

- Mohamed Rachid Maaninou, His Majesty's Ambassador to the Republic of Kazakhstan; - Abderrahim Rahali, His Majesty's Ambassador to the Kingdom of Thailand.