Morocco aims to remove existing barriers with its Amazigh population by teaching the Tamazight language in elementary schools nationwide.
Morocco’s ministry of national education has announced a new draft curriculum to teach the Amazigh language in the county’s elementary schools.
The project is a collaboration between the education ministry and the Royal Institute of Amazigh Culture (IRCAM.) The proposal will next be reviewed by inspectors and teachers of the Amazigh language. The ministry is then set to develop new textbooks and to begin their nationwide distribution ahead of the next school year in 2021-2022.
The draft curriculum for the Amazigh language is the result of r a meeting between the ministry of education and IRCAM on December 30.
At the time, IRCAM stressed the importance of including Amazigh in elementary and secondary schools. Following the meeting, the ministry of education decided to update the curriculum to include teaching the Amazigh language which would be gradually integrated into public schools.
The new pedagogical decision will accelerate Morocco’s commitment to integrate the Amazigh language in all aspects of public life.
The decision follows through on the provisions of law 26.16, relating to a series of regulations with the aim of gradually including Tamazight in Morocco’s public life. The official use of the Amazigh alphabet (Tifinagh) and language in schools is a crucial step towards reaching this ambition.
The Politics of Tamazight
In September 2020, Morocco’s Government Council adopted a draft decree on the implementation of Tifinagh in education and various public services and administrations.
The draft decree stipulates that the councils of national language and Moroccan culture, government, and education meet annually to monitor and evaluate action plans related to Tifinagh’s implementation.
Many sectors of public life have implemented strategies to integrate the Amazigh language into their services. By implementing these inclusive strategies, public institutions work to ensure equal access and participation of Morocco’s Amazigh population in public life.
The Moroccan Ministry of Justice signed an agreement in June 2020 to integrate the Amazigh language into the country’s judicial system.
Members of these communities are now able to use their mother tongue and communicate in courtrooms, which will eliminate a major barrier for them in judicial proceedings.
Morocco’s 2011 constitution recognized Tamazight as the country’s official language alongside Arabic. This recognition, which comes after decades of Amazigh activism, is the first political gesture of its kind in the country’s history.
On the occasion of the Amazigh new year Yennayer, celebrated on January 12, groups of activists and political actors have called for the official recognition of this holiday.
Activists have argued that making Yennayer a national paid holiday in Morocco is a powerful political symbol. The recognition will signal the country’s efforts to fully include its Amazigh heritage as a shared national legacy.
Morocco’s ministry of national education has announced a new draft curriculum to teach the Amazigh language in the county’s elementary schools.
The project is a collaboration between the education ministry and the Royal Institute of Amazigh Culture (IRCAM.) The proposal will next be reviewed by inspectors and teachers of the Amazigh language. The ministry is then set to develop new textbooks and to begin their nationwide distribution ahead of the next school year in 2021-2022.
The draft curriculum for the Amazigh language is the result of r a meeting between the ministry of education and IRCAM on December 30.
At the time, IRCAM stressed the importance of including Amazigh in elementary and secondary schools. Following the meeting, the ministry of education decided to update the curriculum to include teaching the Amazigh language which would be gradually integrated into public schools.
The new pedagogical decision will accelerate Morocco’s commitment to integrate the Amazigh language in all aspects of public life.
The decision follows through on the provisions of law 26.16, relating to a series of regulations with the aim of gradually including Tamazight in Morocco’s public life. The official use of the Amazigh alphabet (Tifinagh) and language in schools is a crucial step towards reaching this ambition.
The Politics of Tamazight
In September 2020, Morocco’s Government Council adopted a draft decree on the implementation of Tifinagh in education and various public services and administrations.
The draft decree stipulates that the councils of national language and Moroccan culture, government, and education meet annually to monitor and evaluate action plans related to Tifinagh’s implementation.
Many sectors of public life have implemented strategies to integrate the Amazigh language into their services. By implementing these inclusive strategies, public institutions work to ensure equal access and participation of Morocco’s Amazigh population in public life.
The Moroccan Ministry of Justice signed an agreement in June 2020 to integrate the Amazigh language into the country’s judicial system.
Members of these communities are now able to use their mother tongue and communicate in courtrooms, which will eliminate a major barrier for them in judicial proceedings.
Morocco’s 2011 constitution recognized Tamazight as the country’s official language alongside Arabic. This recognition, which comes after decades of Amazigh activism, is the first political gesture of its kind in the country’s history.
On the occasion of the Amazigh new year Yennayer, celebrated on January 12, groups of activists and political actors have called for the official recognition of this holiday.
Activists have argued that making Yennayer a national paid holiday in Morocco is a powerful political symbol. The recognition will signal the country’s efforts to fully include its Amazigh heritage as a shared national legacy.
