COVID-19: Economic Committee Brainstorms How to Help Informal Workers

Rabat – Morocco’s new Economic Monitoring Committee, created to mitigate the damage of the novel coronavirus pandemic on the economy, is set to meet this afternoon to discuss how to support Moroccan informal workers.

The committee’s meeting, the third of its kind, comes in the first week of Morocco’s state of health emergency. The lockdown has forced hundreds of thousands of Moroccans to suspend their professional activities and stay home.

The economic committee, chaired by Minister of Economy Mohamed Benchaaboun, will focus on the issue of workers who are not registered with the National Social Security Fund (CNSS) and under-the-table employees.

Workers in “non-essential” sectors, as determined by the ministries of interior and industry, and without social security are some of the most affected by the COVID-19 crisis.

In a previous meeting, the committee announced it would allocate an MAD 2,000 monthly stipend to assist all workers registered in the CNSS who found themselves out of work due to the lockdown. Registered workers will also get allowances and reimbursements of their medical expenses through their Obligatory Health Insurance (AMO).

However, one of the biggest issues regarding the informal sector is the difficulty of conducting a census on them. With 2.4 million Moroccans working in the informal sector, according to the 2014 High Commission for Planning census, it remains to be seen if the committee will find a way to help everyone in the sector.

During the meeting, the economic committee is also set to discuss several issues facing Moroccan companies.

Members of the committee are expected to rule on a request, presented by the General Confederation of Moroccan Businesses (CGEM), to declare the COVID-19 spread in Morocco as a “force majeure.” Such a declaration would protect companies from paying penalties for missing their production deadlines.

Since its creation last week, the Economic Monitoring Committee has brainstormed a series of measures to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on Morocco’s economy. While the Moroccan central bank, Bank al-Maghrib, expects Morocco’s economic growth to be 2.3% in 2020, the economic committee hopes to boost that number through proactive measures.