Rabat -Morocco’s Head of Government Aziz Akhannouch has called upon educational unions to engage in a new series of dialogue next week in an attempt to dodge further strikes in the country’s primary, secondary, and high schools.
Government Spokesperson Mustapha Baitas confirmed Akhannouch’s invitation to the unions during a press briefing following the weekly cabinet council.
Baitas stressed that Akhanoch emphasized the “adherence to and commitment to comprehensive reform of the education system, and motivating the teaching staff to perform their duties to the best of their abilities.”
Teachers across Morocco have been holding a series of strikes since the start of the academic year.
The teachers have been engaged in the strikes as a response against the “unified status” of civil servants, an approved bill that claimed reforms to tackle the challenges protested by teachers regardless of their age, status, and years of service.
For weeks, Akhannouch has been calling on the teachers to return to classes, promising to find a solution to tackle issues related to the protested reforms.
On November 13, the head of government also emphasized that he “guarantees” the establishment of a committee to tackle the issue.
He said that the committee will be headed by the Minister of National Education, Preschool and Sports Chakib Benmoussa, the Minister of Economic Inclusion, Small Business, Employment and Skills Younes Sekkouri, and the Minister Delegate in charge of the budget Fouzi Lekjaa, to negotiate with the professors once they return to classes.
“Minister Benmoussa had held extensive consultations with families and teachers, and they expressed their dissatisfaction with the existing structures,” Akhannouch said.
