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Rabat – After backlash and frustration, Morocco’s government reassured parents that the prices of textbooks will not experience any increase during the 2022-2023 academic year.
The spokesperson of the Moroccan government, Mustapha Baitas, announced the decision on Thursday during the weekly press briefing in Rabat.
He said that the textbooks will remain at their original price, emphasizing that the government will work to find solutions for the publishers.
The Moroccan Association of Publishers has addressed a petition to the government which calls for an increase in textbooks prices due to the high costs of printing.
The publishers asked the government to review the prices of about 186 textbooks for primary and secondary school textbooks.
The publishers currently seek to raise the prices of textbooks by 25% ahead of the 2022-2023 school year.
Parents took to social networks to express frustration regarding a potential increase in textbook fees amid the socio-economic crisis.
Over the past few months, Moroccans have been tackling the hiked prices of fundamental products like grain, oil, and fuel. Fuel prices increased to reach MAD 16 and MAD 18, weighing down the purchasing power of average and low-income holders.
Earlier this month, Moroccan Minister of Education Chakib Benmoussa said that preserving the stability of school textbooks prices remains a “national priority.”
The minister emphasized that 70% of primary level textbooks are funded by the government as part of the country’s “Million Backpacks” initiative.
