The initiative aims to reduce the pressure on hospital staff amid the COVID-19 crisis.
Rabat – “Votre Chauffeur” (Your Driver) deployed 50 vehicles to provide free transport services to Moroccan medical staff from their residences to their workplaces.
The initiative will span several major cities, including Casablanca, Rabat, Marrakech, Agadir, and Fez, a press release from the company received by Morocco World News (MWN) said.
The employee in charge of Votre Chauffeur’s operations, Mohammed Reda-Absse, told MWN that the initiative aligns with the nationwide campaign to express solidarity with medical staff and citizens amid the COVID-19 crisis.
The company will offer 3,000 rides for hospital staff who carry a professional card, the statement added.
The intra-city transport services will be free but “limited to 5 rides per user, in order to allow as many people as possible to benefit from the service.”
Votre Chauffeur drivers will be available beginning April 4 and will remain available throughout the crisis or “until the end” of the 3,000 offered rides.
The company’s commercial director, Jawad Abouzzit, expressed Votre Chauffeur’s gratitude to Morocco’s medical personnel for “their commitment and selflessness in helping our fellow citizens facing this tragedy.”
Abouzzit said the initiative reflects the company’s “solidarity in order to help the medical staff to have an alternative way to go to their work/home in a safe environment.”
When MWN asked if the company will think about offering more rides in the future, Abbouzit said that it is not part of the current plan.
Votre Chauffeur “will not exclude” the option of adding more rides if necessary.
The company invited medical personnel to contact the drivers by phone or on Whatsapp at 06 60 28 28 28.
The call center of VotreChauffeur.ma will be operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week to organize rides.
The initiative is part of the public and private sectors’ national mobilization in response to COVID-19.
The pandemic has killed 33 patients in Morocco, while the number of total confirmed cases stands at 574 as of today, March 31.
Morocco’s government has praised the efforts of medical personnel working to assist COVID-19 patients across the country.
In an effort of solidarity, the Ministry of Health has been urging citizens to limit their movement to maintain their personal safety and the security of their families.
Morocco launched a state of emergency that came into effect on March 20. The state of emergency will continue until April 20.
Only people with exceptional movement permits can leave their homes for work, grocery shopping, medical care, or emergencies. The permit must be signed by local authorities. The permit does not allow anyone to leave their homes after 6 p.m except in cases of emergency.
Morocco also launched a special fund to address the novel coronavirus pandemic at the instructions of King Mohammed VI. The fund was inaugurated on March 15 with a sum of $1 billion. The fund has since nearly tripled in size, thanks to contributions from public and private sector institutions and individuals.
Moroccan officials continue to urge efforts of solidarity to combat the spread of the virus.
