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Rabat – A United Nations’ official today hailed Morocco’s peacekeeping efforts in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“I would sincerely like to salute the contribution of the Moroccan expedition to the United Nations [Peacekeeping] Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo,” said Jean-Tobie Okala in a UN video broadcast to celebrate the International Day of UN Peacekeepers.
The World’s Blue Helmet Day, which is on May 29, was established by the UN General Assembly in December 2002, to honor the sacrifices and valuable contributions of civilian, police, and military personnel that take part in UN peacekeeping efforts.
Okala said that the Moroccan peacekeeping mission has been carrying out initiatives to support the local population for several years, particularly in terms of health services. Morocco in 2003 established a “level 2” hospital in the Ituri region.
According to Military Medicine, level 2 hospitals provide advanced life support, basic surgery, intensive care units, and limited patient holding capacity to peacekeepers within a mission area. The level 2 hospital is backed up by auxiliary laboratory and radiology facilities, a dental unit, and hospital support personnel.
Morocco was named the first global contributor to international peace and security in April by the Good Country Index (GCI), based on the country’s contributions to peacekeeping operations and the UN peacekeeping budget, as well as its efforts to address cybersecurity and refrain from exporting weapons.
Read also: UN Mourns Loss of Moroccan Blue Helmets on UN Peacekeepers’ Day
Just yesterday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed his condolences to King Mohammed VI and the families of two Moroccan blue helmets, the late lieutenant Mohamed Zerrik and sergeant Rachid Marchich. They died while serving the peacekeeping mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA).
Morocco currently has over 1,700 soldiers and police deployed to UN peacekeeping missions in the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, and South Sudan.
According to Morocco’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, more than 74,000 Moroccan peacekeepers have served in 14 UN peacekeeping missions since Morocco first joined the corps in 1960. Morocco has also established 17 military field hospitals in 14 countries, providing over 2,650,000 medical services to locals and refugees.
