The opening of the first session of the legislative year follows a government reshuffle that shrunk the ministerial government from 39 ministers to 23.
Rabat – King Mohammed VI will chair the opening of the first session of the fourth legislative year of the tenth legislature on Friday, October 11, at the Moroccan parliament.
King Mohammed VI will deliver a speech to both the members of the House of Representatives and the House of Councilors, a statement from the Royal Household, Protocol, and Chancellery said in a statement.
Moroccan television channels and radios will broadcast the speech starting at 2.30 p.m. Traditionally, King Mohammed VI opens the new legislative in October.
Members of Parliament are required to wear traditional dress (jellaba) in accordance with the rules of procedure of the House of Councillors and the House of Representatives.
King Mohammed VI’s speech is expected to address the government reshuffle, which took place on October 9.
The monarch is set to discuss his aspirations and expectations from the new ministers. The government reshuffle shrunk the number of ministers from 32 officials to 23 in several sectors. Most of the ministers from Head of Government Saad Eddine El Othmani’s first government kept their positions, including the Minister of Trade and Industry Moulay Hafid Elalamiy and Minister of Agriculture Aziz Akhannnouch.
October 2018 speech
Last year in October, King Mohammed VI urged the government to consider vocational training as a means to curb unemployment.
“It is necessary to work on creating more bridges and links between vocational training programs and general education courses within a unified, integrated system,” King Mohammed VI said in his speech.
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He also discussed the importance of the agricultural sector as it “constitutes a more dynamic source of opportunities and be instrumental in improving living conditions and consolidating stability in rural areas.”
During his 2018 speech, the King also spoke about the government’s decision to reintroduce mandatory military service, calling on all citizens of all social classes to show mobilization to defend their homeland.
King Mohamed VI said that the military service “enhances the sense of belonging to the homeland.”
“With regard to performing military service, it must be emphasized that all the Moroccan citizens concerned – without exception – are equal, regardless of social background, diploma or education,” the monarch said.
