Rabat- In Thursday’s government council, Head of Government Saad Eddine El Othmani and Minister of Human Rights Mustapha Ramid revealed the number of children unregistered at birth and discussed the national campaign to accelerate birth registration, as well as approving other draft laws.
During the meeting, Ramid presented a report on the campaign to grant birth certificates to children whose births were not registered with civil status offices. Granting birth certificates will ensure their full rights as Moroccan citizens, including access to education and healthcare.
Abiding by Article 32 of the Moroccan constitution dictating the state’s duties towards children, the campaign is supervised by the Ministry of Justice; the Ministry of State for Human Rights; the Ministry of Interior; and the Ministry of Solidarity, Equality, Family and Social Development.
The campaign is staffed by 1,941 team members and regional committees and assisted by 2,110 civil status offices.
According to Ramid, since the campaign’s launch in September 2017, 23,151 children have been registered, representing 28 percent of the 83,682 unregistered individuals according to 2017 figures. Meanwhile, 39,481 birth certificate applications are under processing.
Ramid emphasized that parents’ failure to register their children is caused by their lack of understanding of the law. He also noted the campaign’s efforts to raise awareness of the importance of registering marriages and children at birth.
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Draft laws and agreements
The council also reviewed draft law 19.18 presented by the Minister of Economy and Finance, Mohamed Boussaid, which lists the professional duties of customs agents and redefines the government’s strategies on international trade.
The council also approved a draft decree presented by Minister of Tourism, Industry, Trade, Investment and Digital Economy Moulay Hafid Elalamy, concerning the monitoring and analyzing of investments and corporate profits.
The draft law was approved on the agreement signed by Morocco and the Republic of Congo in Brazzaville, Congo, on April 30, dedicated to preventing double taxation and tax evasion. The agreement was among several agreed on to strengthen bilateral relations between the two countries.
At the closing of the meeting, the council appointed new senior officials in the Ministry of Equipment, Transport, Logistics and Water.
On the sideline, El Othmani referred to king Mohammed VI’s personal supervision of the humanitarian aid recently sent to benefit Palestinians in Gaza, Al Quds (Jerusalem), and Ramallah following the recent violence, while also hailing Morocco’s undying support for Palestine and until it achieves independence.
