Morocco Adopts New Law allowing Midwives to Open Birth Centers

Taroudante – Morocco’s Committee on Social Sectors in the House of Representatives voted for a new law on Wednesday, allowing midwives to open their own clinics – or “maternal houses” – giving them more freedom to exercise their profession, according to the Huffington Post Maghreb.

The draft law presents a new “definition of the occupation, place of work, actions and current prescription, and the role of the midwife in the field of reproductive health,” said Najat Baloui, co-founder of the National Association of Midwives in Morocco.

According to Article 5 of the law, midwifery profession may be exercised in the private sector, while Article 12 of the same text specifies “the profession of midwifery is practiced in the private sector, in professional premises that can either be a midwife’s office, or a birth center.”

Contacted Friday by the Huffington Post Maroc, Zouhair Lahna, an obstetrician, former clinical director of the Universities of Paris VII, and member of Doctors without Borders welcomed the government’s move, saying “It’s a great decision.”

The doctor said, “This will allow pregnant women to follow their pregnancies for cheaper costs,” adding that pregnancy is not a disease, but rather “a state that the midwife is in my view more likely to follow.”

The Moroccan doctor added that this new law would help women from low social classes, who often do not have the means to go see a specialist, let alone to have a safe place to control their pregnancies and deliver children in good conditions.

Another doctor, Chafik Chraibi, obstetrics and gynecology professor in Morocco, hailed the move, saying that it is a good thing that midwives can open their own birth centers in a well-regulated framework.

Morocco has given importance to the sector of reproductive health in recent years, trying to provide better conditions for women all over the country to follow their pregnancies and deliver their children in good conditions.