Moroccan Institutions Partner to Create Pre-School Quality Standard

Rabat – Several Moroccan institutions have signed three agreements to accelerate the standardization of quality preschool across the country.

Launched in 2018, the national program for the standardization of pre-school worked on developing the quality of pre-school education in line with the recommendation of the country’s New Development Model and the ministry’s efforts to revive the sector.

Minister of Education, Pre-school, and Sports Chakib Benmoussa chaired today the signing of the partnership agreements in the presence of the President of Moroccan Foundation for the Promotion of Pre-school Education (FMPS) Noureddine Boutayeb, and Minister Delegate in charge of Budgeting Faouzi Lakjaa.

Minister of Economic Inclusion, Small Business, Employment and Skills, Younes Sekkouri, and the National Coordinator of the National Initiative for Human Development (INDH), Mohamed Dardouri participated in the meeting as well.

Under this framework, FMPS will directly manage pre-school courses, recruit and train teachers, and provide technical equipment for the smooth running of pre-school facilities.

“The foundation already manages 12,000 pre-school units and we believe that by 2028 we will be able, together with the rest of the players, to guarantee this generalization with the required quality,” said Boutayeb.

Benmoussa and Makjaa noted their institutions’ commitment to financing the program while Dardouri and Sekkouri joined them in the task of providing the program with qualified teachers.

Today’s agreements underpin the joint efforts of INDH and the Ministry of Education to improve the quality of the Moroccan education system. They also align with the objectives of INDH’s third phase of operation for the 2019-2023 period.

The plan seeks to increase the country’s competitiveness through the development of qualified and well-trained human capital.

Between 2019 and 2021, INDH partnered with the Ministry of education to generalize pre-school education in rural areas, leading to the establishment of 8,000 pre-school units, 3,790 of which are currently operating.

While these measures sound promising, Moroccans continue to be dissatisfied with the current educational system. In April 2021, 45% of Moroccans expressed satisfaction with the sector, according to the Arab Barometer.