Morocco Launches National Agency to Protect Children

Rabat – The House of Councillors approved Tuesday the creation of the National Agency for Child Protection (ANPE), along with specialized child protection centers and social care facilities. 

The law, numbered 29.24, received overwhelming support, with 35 councillors in favor and two opposed.

Secretary of State for Employment Hicham Sabiry presented the draft law, stressing that it establishes a coordinated institutional framework for child protection. 

He described the legislation as a comprehensive approach to unify all actors in the sector, optimize resources, and tackle legal and practical challenges that affect children’s welfare.

The law introduces a national agency dedicated exclusively to child protection. It operates under participatory governance structures that bring together all relevant ministries and organizations. 

Sabiry clarified that the ANPE will oversee child protection centers directly and define responsibilities for social care institutions, including granting authorizations, monitoring operations, evaluating the situation of children, and supporting inspections.

The draft law defines two types of care within the centers. A closed system provides full services on-site for children, with limited outside access under strict legal conditions. An open system allows children to engage in educational, social, and reintegration activities outside the centers while remaining under the agency’s supervision.

The legislation specifies which children qualify for each type of facility, including minors in conflict with the law, those transferred from correctional institutions, vulnerable or abandoned children, and victims of crimes or abuse.

Majority parliamentary groups welcomed the law, highlighting its human and social dimensions. 

They also described it as part of a broader effort to modernize Morocco’s child protection system through legislative and institutional reforms that align with the Constitution.

Opposition groups underlined the need for preventive policies that guarantee equal opportunities and protection for children in all regions. 

They stressed the importance of applying the law consistently through coordinated, child-focused public policies to ensure durable protection of children’s rights across the country.