Rabat — Doctors across Morocco are stepping up protests accusing the government of ignoring their calls for reform in public healthcare with more walkouts scheduled from December 30 to January 5, announced the Independent Union of Public Sector Doctors (SIMSP) on Monday.
The nationwide strike will affect all public health facilities except emergency and intensive care units to ensure that some level of care remains available.
During this time, doctors will not be at diagnostic centres and they will also boycott administrative tasks and refuse to issue medical certificates.
A large march is planned for December 29 in Rabat, SIMSP’s statement indicated, adding that it is aimed at opposing laws on strikes and pensions.
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The doctors’ union said their demands have been ignored by the Ministry of Health. “Our requests remain unanswered,” the union stated in the statement. The union has criticized a new framework for doctors, calling it “scandalous.” They argue it threatens job security and opens the door to unfair dismissals.
The demands include extra grades for doctors beyond the current scale, higher salaries, and an end to limits on promotions.
The union also wants the government to honour agreements made in 2011, 2023, and 2024.
Doctors are also upset with the 2025 budget plan, which they say fails to address the health sector’s funding issues. They are concerned about plans to shift salaries from central budgets to local health groups, warning this could lead to instability.
The union says doctors will continue to boycott school health programmes and what they call “improvised” surgical campaigns. They insist on maintaining high medical standards while pushing for change.
The government has been urged to act quickly. The union warns that delays will only deepen the crisis in Morocco’s struggling health sector.
