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Rabat – Medical and pharmacy students across Morocco persist in their boycott of classes, training, and exams, citing unresolved grievances over the quality of education and training.
Abderahman Bouhsiss, the representative of third-year students at the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy in Rabat, spoke with Morocco World News, sharing student’s concerns and demands.
Their concerns primarily revolve around the rejection of the government reforms, including the decision to shorten their medical education by one year, he told MWN.
The boycott has extended across the country’s medical and pharmacy faculties, and recently saw 100% success in participation at the faculties in Errachidia and Guelmim.
Despite rescheduled exams following council meetings at each faculty, the boycott continued as students’ demands remained unmet. Students initially boycotted exams which were set to take place in late December 2023.
Protests at the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy in Rabat, January 2024.
Bouhsiss highlighted an agreement made with the government in December, which students perceive as full of “empty promises.” These promises, according to Bouhsiss, have only perpetuated delays, with assurances of resolving issues pushed as far back as April, leaving students disappointed with the lack of “concrete” action.
At the core of their demands is the rejection of the government’s decision to reduce their training from seven to six years, purportedly to increase the doctor workforce in the country.
However, students expressed apprehension over the absence of accompanying decisions or clarity on the restructuring of the third cycle of medical studies. The ambiguity surrounding the sixth year’s modalities and its potential impact on the quality of education is a cause for central concern.
Bouhsiss emphasized the students’ uncertainty regarding the restructuring’s implications, particularly regarding residency placement exams and the continuity of their education.
Read also: Moroccan Healthcare in Crisis as Students, Professionals Join Nationwide Protests
Bouhsiss captured the prevailing sentiment among students with the phrase “against the fog,” which represents their fight against ongoing uncertainty and confusion.
Protests at the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy in Rabat, January 2024.
The issue of overcrowding in classes and hospitals adds to medical students’ concerns, as many argue that the influx of students could compromise the quality of training.
Bouhsiss lamented the situation where multiple students attend to a single patient for training. “You find seven or eight students gathered around one patient .. nobody learns,” he told MWN.
Local issues in each medical faculty across Morocco exacerbate the challenges.
Protesting students said the government “failed” to honor agreements and deadlines, including the delayed opening of the University Hospital of Agadir, initially slated for 2021.
Bouhsiss also decried the inadequacy of the monthly scholarship, amounting to MAD 630 ($62), for students in their third to sixth years, which falls short of covering basic expenses like lunch and transportation.
Protests at the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy in Rabat, January 2024.
While the medical student acknowledged the necessity of increasing the doctor workforce, he vehemently opposed compromising the quality of training in pursuit of quantity.
“We are not against increasing the number of doctors in Morocco, but we are against increasing the quantity at the expense of quality,” he concluded.
Medical students organized several protests in front of the parliament in Rabat to voice their demands and call on the health and higher education ministry to return to the negotiation table.
