Rabat – The Supervisory Board of Morocco’s Railway Training Institute (IFF) has announced the appointment of Abdelkader Boujdad as Chairman of the Board and Ulrich Bouly as Director General, effective January 1, 2026. They succeed Youssef Bahmad and Raphael Rabier, respectively, the IFF said in a statement.
The appointments reflect the Board’s aim to strengthen the governance of the institute by relying on highly experienced professionals recognized for their expertise and commitment to the railway sector, the statement added.
Abdelkader Boujdad is a graduate of the National Higher School of Mines of Rabat (formerly ENIM) and brings over 30 years of experience at the Moroccan National Railways Office (ONCF).
He joined ONCF in 1994, working for eight years in operational safety roles before holding several senior positions in traffic management. He was appointed Director of Traffic in 2019, a role he held until November 2025.
Meanwhile, Ulrich Bouly is an engineer from École Centrale Lille who has worked in the railway sector since 1997. He began his career with the French National Railway Company (SNCF) in operational roles before leading Captrain Belgium, a key European rail freight company under the SNCF Group.
He was appointed Chief Operations Officer at Thalys in 2017, where he oversaw strategic renewal projects and operational planning. He later served as Performance & Compliance Director at Eurostar Group, the company managing high-speed rail services across Europe, before joining the Institut de Formation Ferroviaire (IFF).
“With the arrival of these two experienced and complementary leaders, IFF strengthens its strategic positioning and enhances its capabilities to achieve its development and excellence goals,” the institute said.
The IFF, based in Rabat, was founded in 2015 through a partnership between Morocco’s national railway company ONCF and France’s national railway company SNCF during Morocco’s High-Speed Rail project.
The institute offers a comprehensive training program with nearly 200 modules, covering all technical and managerial skills needed to operate a modern railway system, concluded the statement.
