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Morocco Week in Review
June 19 2005
Weather degradation costs Morocco 4.6% of GDP, official.
AIDS : AMJCS launches Allo....SIDA à la Marocaine.
Vigilance, efficient arm to fight AIDS, activist
Olympic Champion El Moutawakel Recognized; Calls for More Women's Participation.
IPEC Programme Helps Moroccan Children Return to School.
Employment: Gender discrimination still current in workplaces.
GDP Growth revised down to 1.2% for 2005.
Civil society: Bayti receives MAD 1 million cheque.
Education : Thousands sit for A Level exams amid fears of massive failure.
Music : Jewish heritage back under the spotlights
Women in Morocco struggle to expand their rights.
Moroccan GDP depends less on agriculture, planning commissioner.
Lawrence-Arnott to open new Art gallery.
Cogent Systems wins Morocco contract.
Canada should conclude free trade agreement with Morocco, senator.
Minister wants to increase preachers' salaries.
Cultures: TVM working on cartoons in Amazigh language.
Couscous maker wins Canadian 'bio-food export!excellence prize'.
Archeology: Casablanca's destroyed treasures.
An Eye-Opener in Morocco...Lensing to Begin on Wes Craven's THE HILLS HAVE EYES.
Morocco's dirham: pressure building for change.
Plans for sea fisheries management needed in Morocco.
Morocco - Modernisation continues.
Weather degradation costs Morocco 4.6% of GDP, official.
Rabat, June 16
Morocco loses 4.6% of the GDP because of the weather degradation, which triggers desertification, said the High Commissioner for Water and Forests Abdeladim Lhafi. The official said this is an "alarming rate" compared to the agricultural economy, which represents 17% of the GDP. Lhafi said, on the occasion of the World Day to Combat Desertification, celebrated in Morocco under the title "The Woman and Desertification," this loss can be avoided through adopting "healthy" behavior. He revealed a three-year plan (2005-2007) that his department is working out and that includes 71 ecologically friendly projects to preserve woody zones. Partnership with local populations to accomplish these projects will be sought, he said. The three-year plan, he explained, also comprises the forestation and the reconstitution of natural woods on an area of 140,000 HA, the development of 13 catchments flowing into dams and combating desertification in 900 HA in the southern provinces. http://www.map.ma/eng/sections/general/weather_degradation9326/view
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AIDS : AMJCS launches Allo....SIDA à la Marocaine.
Karima Rhanem 6/10/2005
The Moroccan Youth AIDS control association, known by its French acronym AMJCS, will launch on Monday a supportive telephone counselling called Allo ... Kifach!!! SIDA kayna..?! (Hello....How!!! AIDS exists?!). This telephone service aims at informing Moroccans about AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. AMJCS is one of the active associations in the field of AIDS prevention. It was created in 1993 by a group of young Moroccans to fight against the spread of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases (STD) in Morocco.
Abdessamad Oussayh, AMJCS president, told Morocco Times that the new telephone service 'Allo Kifach', designed to be more close to Moroccans, aims at providing confidential counselling and information about three major questions contracting AIDS, its symptoms, testing and treatment. The AMJCS president stressed that the most important thing for the association team is listening. "Active listening implies a capacity for restating the caller's point of view so that he/she discovers the causes of the problem and possible solutions. This is different from a dogmatic, authoritarian approach of imposing ready-made solutions on the target," said Oussayh.
In the meantime, AMJCS is currently shooting a TV film on AIDS called Casablanca, which stars Jawad El Khoudi and Abdelali Fatih, and directed by Mourad El Khoudi. The film discusses several taboos in Moroccan society including sexuality and AIDS. "AIDS is still a taboo subject in Morocco, especially its relationship with sexuality. For us, condoms are the only efficient solution for vulnerable groups to protect themselves from sexually transmitted diseases. However, for most Moroccans the distribution of condoms encourages sexual misconduct," said Oussayh. Oussayh added that the association relies mainly on edutainment (Entertainment-Education), especially popular drama, which is very efficient in AIDS campaigns. "Before deciding to shoot this TV film, we have already produced many plays to disseminate our messages. Theatre tells a story. It presents and dramatizes people's way of life. It adds entertainment value to an inspiring message and so keeps the attention of the audience," he said He emphasised that theatre is a medium which allows people to interact in matters concerning the community. "Theatre encourages the audience to reflect on behaviour while identifying with specific characters, who find themselves in a well known and difficult situation," he added. Beside edutainment, the association focuses on interpersonal communication including individual counselling, telephone, peer education, group counselling, and opinion leaders.
They also use small media (flip charts, brochures, slides, posters, video, audio tapes); mass media (radio, television, newspaper); and edutainment (theatre, music, folk media). Morocco is one of the North African countries that has known AIDS since the middle of the 80s. The first case of AIDS was discovered in 1986 in a man infected by a blood transfusion during surgery in France. Statistics up to 2005 reveal that the total number of cases in Morocco reached 1,587 of which 62% were men, and 38% women. According to AMJCS, 16,000 to 25,000 people live with AIDS in Morocco. http://www.moroccotimes.com/paper/article.asp?idr=11&id=7276
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Vigilance, efficient arm to fight AIDS, activist.
Rabat, June 14
The number of HIV positives in Morocco is low in comparison to other countries, but vigilance is a must, warned the chairwoman of the Moroccan Association to Fight Aids (ALCS). Hakima Himmich said in an interview published Tuesday in the Arabic speaking Moroccan daily "Assabah" although only 1587 cases are numbered of AIDS-suffering people in Morocco, which is low in comparison to some sub-Saharan countries, where the disease affects 3 millions and kills another 2 millions, it is a necessity to be vigilant as the disease may progress rapidly in the future. Himmich said Casablanca and Agadir (Southwest) are the cities that are most stricken by the disease. Recent figures showed that the number of HIV positives in Morocco is estimated between 13,000 to 16,000. http://www.map.ma/eng/sections/social/vigilance_efficient/view
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Olympic Champion El Moutawakel Recognized; Calls for More Women's Participation.
14/06/2005 On Monday (13 June)
Moroccan Olympic champion Nawal El Moutawakel received an honorary sports award from Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali for her exceptional sports performance and her role in promoting women in sports. At a press conference held after receiving the award, El Moutawakel, president of the International Olympic Committee assessment committee, said she is impressed by the increase in the number of women participating in the Olympics. However, she said women need to be better represented in sports-related decision making organizations http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/homepage/
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IPEC Programme Helps Moroccan Children Return to School.
14/06/2005 Recent surveys show some 600,000 Moroccan children between the ages of seven and 14 work instead of attending school. Moroccan child welfare organizations are joined with the International Labour Organization (ILO) through its International Programme for the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC) to end this phenomenon. Bladi.Net reports through the IPEC programme several hundred Moroccan children left their jobs and now attend school while several hundred others were directed to either vocational schools or non-formal education. The IPEC programme is on-going. http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/homepage/
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Employment: Gender discrimination still current in workplaces.
6/17/2005
CDT member Bouchra Bouchentouf drew attention on the situation of women working in the Moroccan industrial sector yesterday at a seminary organized in Barcelona as part of the Mediterranean Social Forum. "Since June 2004, Morocco has had an employment law that guarantees the respect of equality and motherhood conventions. This law does define harassment as a serious offence but only grants victims the possibility of leaving their job with a compensation," said Democratic Workers' Confederation (CDT) member Bouchra Bouchentouf at a seminary on the situation of women in the Mediterranean region. Female workers in Morocco are easy to exploit, Bouchentouf explained. She added that the rights of pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers are not respected and that women are more likely than men to work without a contract or without being officially included in the payroll. She added that women also have less access to social security or membership in trade-unions, and they are the first ones to be fired. Bouchentouf's intervention was part of a seminary on the situation of women in the Mediterranean region. Other themes dealt with yesterday included Peace and the disarming of civilians and the impact of free trade on the Euro-Mediterranean region, especially the agricultural sectors of the region's poorest countries. Bouchentouf was part of the numerous Moroccan delegations which attended the first day of the Mediterranean Social Forum, a three-day regional meeting organized in preparation for the World Social Forum and scheduled to last until June 19. About 250 Moroccans were present at the first day of the meeting despite the fact that about 500 North African civil society members were not granted the necessary visas to participate in the Forum. Most Moroccan delegates belonged to Human Rights, Sahraoui associations and trade-unions.
http://www.moroccotimes.com/paper/article.asp?idr=11&id=7454
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GDP Growth revised down to 1.2% for 2005.
Economic growth for 2005 in Morocco was drastically revised down on Wednesday by the government's High Commission of Planning to 1.2% from a previous 3% included in the 2005 Budget Law. HCP had already revised down in February the initial forecast to 2.6% on the premise of an "average agricultural season" and a USD 36 crude oil barrel. The Rabat-based institution attributes the latest revision to the challenges of the textile sector along with a below-average agricultural season. Exports of the textile sector industry recorded a 14.7% drop in the first quarter due to the phase-out on January 1 of the 1974 Multi Fiber Agreements. A below-average rainfall for the season will lead to a 15.2% decline of the agricultural sector contribution to Gross Domestic Product, according to HCP.
Cereal harvest in 2005 is expected to total 36 million quintals, a major decline in comparison with the 80 million recorded in 2004. Moreover, a wave of harsh cold in January and February took its toll on the production of vegetables in Morocco. HCP says that excluding agriculture, economic growth in 2005 is expected to total 4.5%, down from the 5.1% recorded a year earlier. Growth in the mining sector in 2005 is forecasted to average 3.5% due to a moderate increase in phosphate-exports. The real-estate industry is one of the rare sectors which will grow in 2005, according to the institution headed by Mohammed Lahlimi. HCP said that growth will be driven mainly by the ongoing program of low-market housing, along with major construction works of tourism facilities. http://www.moroccotimes.com/news/article.asp?id=7247
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Civil society: Bayti receives MAD 1 million cheque.
Bayti, the Casablanca-based association for the support of children in difficulty was granted a one million dirham cheque by the Procter and Gamble international foundation. The association was officially given the cheque at the inauguration of a new centre including, among other things, a class room, a carpentry workshop and a library, reported MAP. Bayti is mainly aimed at helping abandoned children, street children and children suffering from abuse, all of them aged between 0 and 13. The association does so through health and educational programmes since its creation in 1994. According to MAP, about 1,000 boys and girls have benefited from the association's action so far. http://www.moroccotimes.com/news/article.asp?id=7194
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Education : Thousands sit for A Level exams amid fears of massive failure.
Houda Filali-Ansary 6/11/2005
Today is the last examination day for Morocco's 266,105 candidates. So far, worries that last year's massive failures might recur do not seem justified. "I hope marks will be good this year. I hope my son will manage to go past this stage and start thinking about his later studies," said the father of a student as he waited impatiently for him to come out of the examination room. About 45% of this year's A Level candidates are female. Since June 9, about 266,105 candidates, 118,269 of whom are female, have been sitting for the A Level examinations in Morocco. Figures published by the Ministry of Education indicate that of these students, 76.94% came from state-owned high-schools, 1.1% from private high-schools and 21.96% were independent candidates. Figures are not very different from last year's, except for the fact that there are more students from the private system. As far as sections are concerned, most students (92.3%) are either specialized in literature or in science. The remaining 7.7% came from various technology branches.
Additional exams are scheduled to take place on July 11-12 for borderline cases with average marks between 8 and 10 points (out of 20). In the meantime, the whole country is holding its breath while waiting for the results to be published on June 21 and July 19. Echoes seem to have been positive so far as students explained that the examinations remained "within their reach" even if they were a bit too long given the allotted time. This showed that examination boards have drawn conclusions from last year's exams in which students had complained about the exams being too difficult. In 2004, the first A Level examination session led to the admission of only 33.62% only, leading to a massive rescue operation: another 47% managed to scrape through thanks to the additional exams. Event then, according to the French language daily "L'Economiste," 70 to 75% of unsuccessful students abandoned high-school as they were either unable or no longer willing to try again. http://www.moroccotimes.com/paper/article.asp?idr=11&id=7303
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Music : Jewish heritage back under the spotlights
People are beginning to realize the importance of Morocco's Jewish heritage, said Royal Advisor André Azoulay, Thursday in Tetouan. Azoulay, who presided over a meeting on "Moroccan "Andalusian" music and the influence of Jewish Moroccan musicians," stressed its importance explaining that it meant people were starting to realize the importance of Morocco's Jewish heritage. In a declaration to the media, he also explained that the meeting reflected the changes Morocco is currently going through, reported MAP.
Azoulay expressed his will to integrate this part of the national heritage in the Moroccan history which is already known for its diversity. Participants in the meeting insisted on the importance of promoting the contribution of Moroccan Jews to the national cultural heritage, particularly in "Andalusian" music, reported MAP. They also insisted on the need to give a new impulse to the Jewish heritage which marked Morocco's history for a very long time as both Jews and Muslims have lived together in peace for centuries.
The meeting was initiated by both the Edmond Amran El Maleh Foundation and the Agency for the Promotion and the Economic and Social Development of the Prefectures and Provinces of Northern Morocco. It included four presentations by researchers and specialists of the Jewish Moroccan heritage, a documentary on the life of Moroccan Jews in the Tetuan Mellah district and a concert by the Tetouan Institute orchestra directed by Amine Al Akrami. Jewish musicians were known for their ability to learn "Andalusian" music lyrics very quickly and for being very good musicians, said participants according to MAP. Historical data have revealed that Jewish populations have been living in Morocco since the Antiquity. Many left Morocco for economic reasons as new technologies introduced during the French colonization left them jobless. Others left following the Kippur war for countries such as France, Canada or Israel. http://www.moroccotimes.com/paper/article.asp?idr=11&id=7145
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Women in Morocco struggle to expand their rights.
news@TimesRecord.Com 06/14/2005 By Caitlin Elsaesser, Times Record Contributor
At the end of April, Femme Action, a Moroccan non-government organization that works to spread women's literacy, debuted a pamphlet explaining in simple terms recent changes to the Moudawana, Morocco's Islamic code of laws governing family and women. The pamphlet is co-sponsored by a number of local NGOs that are attempting to spread the word of the changes that greatly expand the rights of women here. The pamphlet itself reveals an intricate problem in Morocco, involving the struggle to democratize the law and the challenges in making that law a reality.
In October 2003, the King Mohammed VI, considered both the head of the government and Commander of the Faithful here in Morocco, proposed to parliament radical alterations to the Moudawana, the first major changes to the code since 1957. Calling for "far-reaching changes in old mentalities and public perceptions" in a speech before parliament, the king's proposed reform went even further than many of the feminists who had long fought for these reforms had hoped. Morocco's only code of law based on Islamic precepts - criminal, administrative and all other laws are secular - the Moudawana governs marriage and women's rights. Under the former Moudawana, a women was considered a legal minor her entire life and took a vow of obedience to her husband upon marriage. Polygamy was legal. Repudiation was also legal; if a husband wished to divorce his wife without reason, without a judge and without the knowledge of his wife, it was his right.
Many in Morocco, including many in the Islamic party, felt that reform was overdue. However much called for, the proposals of the king were more radical than most anticipated. Among other things, the reforms established the minimum age of marriage for girls as 18, raising it from 15. Repudiation and polygamy were greatly restricted. A wife's duty of obedience to her spouse was rescinded, the family became joint responsibility of both spouses, and the right to divorce by mutual consent was established. Liberals and feminists celebrated the changes as a great victory. The drastic reforms were made possible largely by the changed political climate after the May 2003 Casablanca terrorist attacks, in which Islamic extremists were implicated. After the terrorist attacks, the government initiated a great crackdown against Muslim extremists in Morocco, reforming education, watching Islamic leaders more closely, and in effect pushing through with changes to the Moudawana.
These reforms have been praised as very progressive, and they are for the region. Stephanie Willman Bordat, director of Global Rights in Morocco, said the reforms place Morocco among the most progressive countries in the region, after Tunisia and Turkey. Yet there are parts of the law that still concern activists. Polygamy and repudiation, for example, though under strict control, are still legal. Men and women have unequal access to divorce, women having to give one of the five causes given in the Moudawana. Further, some organizations question whether Islamic law should apply to women at all when it does not in other spheres of legal jurisdiction. "It is inconsistent and discriminatory when all the other laws of the country are based on a civil code to have religion be the basis of the laws that apply to women," said Bordat, summarizing the viewpoint of many women's groups. The debate continues on what the law books ought to say here.
Yet where does the Moroccan population stand? Many ask: Are Moroccans ready for this reform? These are complex questions. Many Moroccans, including well-educated women and men, are against the changes to the Moudawana. In 2000, for example, masses of Moroccans gathered to voice their opinion on changes to laws governing women. In Rabat, just near the parliament building, 300,000 Moroccans demonstrated in favor of liberalizing rights for women. Forty-five minutes north in Casablanca, close to 1 million Moroccans demonstrated against expanding rights. Many faces in the crowd were women. One woman reported that among students in a drama club at a university, most women were against the reforms, saying that they threatened Moroccan culture and Moroccan families. Morocco has seen a rise of religious conservatism in the last few decades. People remark that more and more women are choosing to wear the veil: Visit a university classroom, and you will find many of the women at the top of their class donning colorful covers. Many will say that the rise in conservatism has to do partly with the successful recruiting efforts of religious parties in Morocco. The Islamic party has gained a lot of support due to grassroots mobilizing efforts, says Bordat.
Islamic parties for the last few decades have been visiting rural and disadvantaged urban areas to provide charity for families while at the same time spreading their doctrine. In the 2002 election, the people came out in great numbers for the PJD, Morocco's only official Islamic party. While the PJD took a large hit in the 2003 elections after the terrorist attacks, they still guard significant support. Yet, while religious conservatism does have support in many sectors of the population, in reality the greatest barrier to reform may not be opposition but lack of knowledge. In a country where 65 percent of women overall cannot read - and in rural areas 83 percent cannot read - there are serious barriers to women understanding the rights that already exist. A survey done in 2000 by ADFM, one of the big women's rights organizations in Morocco, showed that many in Morocco were unaware of even the basic concepts of the pre-reform Moudawana. Motivated by the view that knowledge is power, local Moroccan NGOs making great strides in democratization work through spreading the knowledge of women's rights. Many are running tireless campaigns of general and legal literacy throughout the country. As they set up classrooms and disperse textbooks, they use the same opportunity to spread the word about the Moudawana and human rights through creative means such as radio programs, theater, artwork, and campaign buses. Femme Action, for example, recently released a pamphlet that covered each of the major reforms to the Moudawana pictorially and in three different languages.
The debate continues over the laws governing women's rights in Morocco. True progress has been made in the recent reforms to the Moudawana. But for now, it seems that more than what is written in the laws, real progress depends on the efforts of these local NGOs to give the ability to read and to spread the word on what rights exist.
Caitlin Elsaesser is a 2000 graduate of Brunswick High School. She earned a degree in English literature from Carleton College in Northfield, Minn., and first visited Morocco in 2002 through the School for International Training. She returned this spring to continue language studies and freelance for a Moroccan paper. http://www.timesrecord.com/website/main.nsf/news.nsf/0/474CCCA9F7FC041F05257020005C0EC5?Opendocument
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Moroccan GDP depends less on agriculture, planning commissioner.
Rabat, June 13
Some economic indicators show that the Moroccan GDP is decreasingly contingent upon agriculture, and that its resistance to weather changes is a "true trend", said the High Commissioner for Planning. Ahmed Lahlimi said in an interview published, Monday, in the economic supplement of "Le Matin du Sahara" daily, statistics of his department forecast a sustained growth of 4.1% of sectors apart from agriculture, such as telecom, financial services. Regretting the "particularly severe" effects of the weather conditions Morocco underwent this year, that would cause a fall of 15.2% of the agricultural GDP, Lahlimi heralded a good economic growth in 2005 thanks to sectors outside agriculture. He said that, contrary to 1999, when a similar crop year pulled the GDP down to a negative performance, this year's growth will only fall to +1.2%. According to Lahlimi, estimations show, despite everything, "positive tendencies in terms of reinforcing the economic tissue of the country." http://www.map.ma/eng/sections/economy/moroccan_gdp_depends/view
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Lawrence-Arnott to open new Art gallery.
Rabat, June 01
Art connoisseurs Lawrence and Arnott will open an art gallery in the Moroccan central town of Marrakech on June 11. Designed by its directors Philip Arnott and John Lawrence, the art gallery is expected to play a tremendous social and cultural role in the imperial city similarly to Tangier art gallery, (Northern Morocco). The gallery will represent new artists and exhibit their works. Since 1991, Tangier Lawrence-Arnott art gallery has become a venue for the most important cultural events in the city. It featured several Moroccan, European and American painters such as Robert Heindel, Jerry Browning, Stacey Elko, Colin Watson, Katie Gabet, Jacques Gatti, Jean-Pierre Favre, Saïd Qodaïd and Mohamed Hamri. Lawrence and Arnott have, since 1975, gained a renowned reputation as connoisseurs of Moroccan art. They have developed the Moroccan art market and organised several charity events. John Lawrence and Philip Arnott are the representatives of the London-based famous Bonhams auction house in North Africa. Bonhams is the world's oldest and largest auctioneer of fine art and antiques still in British ownership. The name Bonhams is recognised worldwide throughout all sectors of the fine art, antiques and collectors market, and several of its departments are established world leaders within their fields. http://www.map.ma/eng/sections/culture/lawrence-arnott_to_o/view
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Cogent Systems wins Morocco contract.
15-06-2005
Cogent Systems recently announced it has been awarded a contract for approximately $34 million to install its Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) for a national criminal and civil deployment supporting a national identification program in Morocco. The contract will consist of software and hardware, as well as services and maintenance which will extend beyond 2005. "We are pleased to have received this new large contract award," commented Ming Hsieh, President and CEO of Cogent Systems. "This award is an example of how our technology and services can be used for civil initiatives such as national identification programs." Cogent Systems, Inc. is the world's leading supplier of integrated system solutions using biometrics for both government and commercial customers. http://www.albawaba.com/en/countries/Morocco/184985
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Canada should conclude free trade agreement with Morocco, senator.
Politics, 6/16/2005
Canada should conclude a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Morocco as the United States did this year, suggested a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee at the Canadian Senate. Speaking during a debate on Africa, Sen. Consiglio Di Nino, insisted that the Canadian government should conclude such an agreement with the North African country. Taking the floor, Morocco's ambassador to Ottawa, Mohamed Tangi, highlighted the timeliness of setting up a "triangular approach" within which Morocco would act as intermediary between Canada and African states. He recalled that the kingdom plays a similar role with a number of UN organisms. http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/050616/2005061631.html
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Minister wants to increase preachers' salaries.
Politics, 6/16/2005
Moroccan Minister of Islamic Affairs, Ahmed Toufiq on Wednesday voiced his department's hope that an additional budget of MAD 100m (Euro 9m) be earmarked to improve the situation of Friday prayer's preachers. Speaking at the House of Representatives' question time, the minister said this amount, which aims also to increase allowances for the other mosque personnel, is part of the ministry's strategy to better define the mission of mosques and improve the work conditions of their staff. A study of the ministry of Islamic affairs shows that mosque personnel (Imams, preachers, muezzins, etc) totals some 43,894, including 33,082 imams. The minister also recalled the initiative of King Mohammed VI to allocate an allowance of MAD 150m in 2004 to 32,432 Imams http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/050616/2005061632.html
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Cultures: TVM working on cartoons in Amazigh language.
Nabil Benabdallah declared Wednesday in Rabat that the joint inter-ministerial commission, which includes members of the Royal Institute of Amazigh Culture (IRCAM), is considering the production of TV cartoons in Amazigh. The Minister of Communication and Government spokesperson, who was answering a question by MPs on children's programmes, explained that the TVM channel is currently working on a cartoon series in Amazigh, based on the Moroccan context. As for the second channel, 2M, the minister added that it was currently examining a project presented by a private company, reported MAP. The new project consists in a weekly Amazigh-language programme called "Awas," aimed at children. He explained that, for the moment, the "project needs to be perfected [...], especially as the sequence dedicated to cartoons needs technical improvements."
Benabdallah also explained that the teams working on these programmes were facing problems concerning the Berber language to be used for the translations (Tarifit, Tamazight or Tachelhit), adding that a great amount of work remains to be done for the standardisation and the normalisation of Amazigh. He also reminded the MPs that most of the cartoons currently broadcast by the Moroccan TV channels are Japanese and Chinese productions translated into Arabic by foreign companies, most of them Lebanese. Intellectual property laws and hefty dubbing costs make it impossible to translate these cartoons into Amazigh. http://www.moroccotimes.com/paper/article.asp?idr=11&id=7414
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Couscous maker wins Canadian 'bio-food export!excellence prize'.
Montreal, June 17
A Moroccan Couscous-maker settled in Canada has been awarded the "bio-food export!excellence prize" from the Canadian Quebec Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Industry. Abdelmajid Jamaleddine Head of "Les produits Zinda Canada", a company that produces Couscous, was rewarded for his entrepreneurship and dynamism. Created in 2000, the company exports Couscous to several countries notably the USA, Brazil, Chile, Venezuela, France, Belgium, Spain, Netherlands, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Italy and Morocco. http://www.map.ma/eng/sections/box5/couscous_maker_wins/view
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Archeology: Casablanca's destroyed treasures.
By Susan Searight-Martinet | Morocco TIMES 6/18/2005
Rabat-Casablanca and the Tafilalet are here added to the information on recent archaeological research in Morocco which appeared on-line in the Morocco Times in May and June. As is usual nowadays, the National Institute for Archaeological Sciences and Heritage (known under its French acronym INSAP) has collaborarted with foreign collegues in the projects outlined here.
Rabat The numerous inland caves beside the coastal road between Rabat and Casablanca were once within close reach of the sea when sea-level was higher. This extremely strategical position made them desirable living places for prehistoric people, so it is not surprising that many of them have yielded some of Morocco's most important finds. Two of these caves have been excavated in the last few years: El M'nasra and El Harhoua II. The first showed a succession of occupations from the Aterian (over 27,000 years ago), through the Iberomaurusians (known near Oujda and in the Rif) who used the cave around 14,000 years ago, down to populations with pottery and Neolithic-type stone tools, whose occupation is dated to around 4,000 bc. Among the significant pottery finds was a pot with an incised decoration made by a particular seashell, a type of decoration which had previously only been known in north Morocco.
The first occupants of E M'nasra, the Aterians, left their typical stone tools and traces of hearths. They also buried some of their dead in the cave, and their bones are useful additions to the burials already known. In the El Harhoura cave, the objective of the 2001 research was to take up the excavations of 1978 and 1996. The cave had already yielded a Neolithic burial and was a promising site for new discoveries. In fact, the 2001 team unearthed five more human skeletons, a great many animal bones and an impressive quantity of pottery. Occupation of the cave ranged from the Middle Palaeolithic through the Upper Palaeolithic down to the more recent Neolithic period (responsible for the pottery).
Modern archaeological research is no longer limited to the collection of objects but attempts to situate discoveries in a wider context. So the INSAP team also aimed to define the impact of the climate on human activities from the Palaeolithic to the Neolithic; to study the symbolic and ritual comportments used in the region's cave burials; to refine knowledge of the technical and subsistence behaviour of the Palaeolithic and Neolithic populations; and, finally, to clarify the transition from the Aterian Middle Palaeolithic culture to the Upper Palaeolithic in the Temara region, a significant change that is still not fully understood.
Casablanca Moving south to Casablanca, the quarries here have for long been a rich source of archaeological knowledge about the ancient occupation of Morocco. The quarry of Sidi Abderrahman, for instance, on the coast just southwest of the city centre, was first excavated as long ago as 1941. The sides of this quarry, extensively exploited for the construction of the Casablanca port from 1919, are like the unfolding pages of a book to geologists. The succession of sea movements back and forward throughout millions of years, as sea level fell during the Ice Ages and rose during the warm, thawing periods, is clearly reflected in the different strata visible in the quarry. Specialists can tell when the retreating sea deposited sand which later consolidated to sandstone, and when it returned to dig out caves in these deposits.
Early man profited from the caves and beaches and it was their tools, the remains of the animals they ate, and even their own bones that archaeologists started finding. The quarry was recognized to be such an important element for an understanding of Morocco's past that it was classified by a 1951 Dahir - but unfortunately it was so badly protected that exploitation continued and a large part of this world-famous site was destroyed. As well as Sidi Abderrahman, the Morocco-French team has made important discoveries in nearby Carrière Thomas. Work here, begun in 1988, has revealed a human occupation dating back a million years, with people making stone tools of early Acheulean type (one of the oldest known prehistoric cultures). This makes the site one of the earliest in North Africa (if not the earliest, for the dates of an older Algerian site are not so conclusive). Quartzite tools were found in profusion, together with a certain number of animal bones (including some hippopotamus ribs). So far no human remains of this age have yet been discovered: the earliest coming from elsewhere in this quarry are a mere 450,000 years old!
Hopefully, excavations running in May and June of this year will fill in this gap. Sarhro-Tafilalet Leaving the Atlantic coast for the arid regions south of the High Atlas, an ambitious, if rather vaguely-defined project, concerns the Sarhro-Tafilalet region. This research sees Moroccan archaeologists from INSAP collaborating with colleagues from an archaeological and rock art study centre (CESMAP) in northern Italy. The project, entitled "Sarhro-Tafilalet Global Park," extends from the Jbel Sarhro and the Jbel Ouagnat (part of the Anti-Atlas), around the valleys of the Rivers Draa, Rheris and Ziz down to the dunes and oases of Morocco's southeastern desert. The proposed park is indeed global, for it includes the geology, ecology, vegetation, architectural heritage and prehistoric rock art of what is, after all, a fairly large area. The first mission took place in 2003. Research has focused on the well-known rock-art site of Ait Ouazik (south of Tazzarine), where prehistoric populations engraved more than 1,000 images in the sandstone rocks and slabs. Using cellophane sheets, the team has reproduced the majority of these engravings, which can then be studied calmly in the laboratory. A complete photographic coverage of the site has also been made. Particularly interesting was the excavation of a tumulus (five of these stone constructions had already been excavated in the area in 1958, but had not proved very informative). The new excavation revealed three successive periods of use and should provide useful information for dating the engravings and also give a clue to the populations who buried their dead under these conspicuous stone mounds. http://www.moroccotimes.com/paper/article.asp?idr=11&id=7463
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An Eye-Opener in Morocco...Lensing to Begin on Wes Craven's THE HILLS HAVE EYES.
LOS ANGELES, Jun 17, 2005 (BUSINESS WIRE)
Fox Searchlight Pictures announced that principal photography will begin June 27 in Morocco on THE HILLS HAVE EYES. A new take on Wes Craven's 1977 film of the same name, THE HILLS HAVE EYES will be directed by award-winning French filmmaker Alexandre Aja from a screenplay he penned with Gregory Levasseur. The film will be produced by Craven, Peter Locke, who produced the original THE HILLS HAVE EYES, and long-time Craven producing partner Marianne Maddalena, who produced Craven's blockbuster SCREAM series amongst many others. The film's cast will be led by Aaron Stanford (TADPOLE, X2), Ted Levine ("Monk," THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE, WONDERLAND), Oscar and Golden Globe nominee Kathleen Quinlan (APOLLO 13, BREAKDOWN), Vinessa Shaw (MELINDA AND MELINDA, 40 DAYS AND 40 NIGHTS), Emilie de Ravin ("Lost," "Roswell"), Dan Byrd (A CINDERELLA STORY, "Salem's Lot") and Robert Joy (LAND OF THE DEAD, PRETTY PERSUASION).
A family road trip goes terrifyingly awry when the travelers become stranded in a government atomic zone. Miles from nowhere, the Carters soon realize the seemingly uninhabited wasteland is actually the breeding ground of a blood-thirsty mutant family...and they are the prey. When Wes Craven's original THE HILLS HAVE EYES was released in 1977, it quickly became a cult classic. The film is considered to be one of the finest to date in Craven's 40-year career, which also includes such blockbuster hits as the SCREAM series and A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET. Alexandre Aja was nominated for the prestigious Cannes Film Festival Golden Palm for his first film, the short entitled OVER THE RAINBOW. THE HILLS HAVE EYES once again partners him with screenwriter Gregory Levasseur with whom he co-wrote the feature film HAUTE TENSION, which earned accolades at film festivals worldwide for best picture and netted Aja several nominations and an award for Best Director. Aja and Levasseur also partnered on the feature films FURIA and ENTRE CHIENS ET LOUPS.
THE HILLS HAVE EYES will be shot by Director of Photography Maxime Alexandre, who previously collaborated with Aja on HAUTE TENSION, and whose credits also include THE LAST DROP and THE DEFENDER. It was designed by Production Designer Joseph Nemec, who counts among his many action feature credits TWISTER and PATRIOT GAMES. Lawrence Grey, Vice President of Production for Fox Searchlight, and Creative Executive Jeffrey Arkus will oversee the project for Searchlight. Fox Searchlight Pictures is a filmmaker-oriented company that focuses on distinctive films helmed by world-class auteurs and exciting newcomers. It has its own marketing and distribution operations and its films are distributed internationally by Twentieth Century Fox. Fox Searchlight Pictures is a unit of Fox Filmed Entertainment, a unit of Fox Entertainment Group. SOURCE: Fox Searchlight Pictures CONTACT: Fox Searchlight Pictures Breena Camden, 310-369-4915 Copyright Business Wire 2005 http://www.zawya.com/Story.cfm?storyid=168b5443&Section=Countries&page=Morocco&channel=All%20Morocco%20News&objectid=22403786-8F1A-11D4-867000D0B74A0D7C
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Morocco's dirham: pressure building for change.
Wednesday, June 15 - 2005
The IMF recently recommended that Morocco move to a more flexible exchange regime. While reforms may not occur immediately, Standard Chartered's Africa economist, Abah Ofon, explains that the dirham is likely to be liberalised over the medium term. Moroccan authorities have long resisted exporter pressure to devalue the dirham (MAD). This was mainly on the premise that the MAD, pegged to a basket of currencies, was not misaligned. While the IMF has endorsed that view, the Fund has nevertheless recommended moving to a more flexible FX regime to improve Morocco's resilience to economic shocks.
While policymakers remain skeptical of the benefits of a flexible currency, recent economic developments are beginning to sway opinion. The Moroccan central bank eased its rigid position on the currency last year, by suggesting that the MAD would be liberalised in the medium term. There are three reasons why we believe policymakers might be changing their minds on this issue: 1. The sustained strength of the euro, which is heavily weighted in the MAD's currency basket. Euro strength has accounted for much of MAD appreciation. In December 2004, EUR strength dragged the MAD to its strongest point in 10 years on a real effective exchange rate basis. Although the euro has recently fallen back against the US dollar we expect this weakness will be temporary. 2. Free Trade Agreements signed with the US and the EU/Mediterranean countries will increase the need for more exchange rate flexibility to maintain competitiveness 3. The end of the multi-fibre agreement, which will put pressure on Morocco's important textile exports. Increased competition from Asia saw textile exports drop by 34.6% y/y in January 2005. But while there is an obvious need for a change to the peg, devaluation is not a done deal for now.
Policymakers will draw some comfort from Morocco's strong balance of payments position, which allows it to withstand the shock to textile exports. Furthermore, ongoing structural reforms are attracting textile companies into Morocco. In May, three foreign textile companies announced investment projects worth USD 300m. This will help sustain the textile industry and create an estimated 2,500 jobs. There are other reasons to suggest devaluation could be delayed. The peg has been helpful in generating macroeconomic stability and keeping inflation low. Inflation has averaged 2% since 1999. Any change to the FX regime would require the authorities to establish a monetary policy framework that would provide an alternative nominal anchor. More fiscal policy rectitude is also needed. Though the government has recently hiked fuel prices to dampen a spiraling fiscal deficit, we still expect the deficit to rise to 5.5% of GDP in 2005 from around 5.0% in 2004. In addition, Morocco's worsening trade deficit has been more function of rising imports. In March 2005, imports increased by 9.1% y/y, and crude oil imports rose by over 50% -- accounting for much of the rise in Morocco's import bill. Moreover, other sectors of the economy are likely to add to pressure on import requirements. This year, the government is expected to confirm a poor cereal harvest. Output is expected to be 40% below the normal 6.0 million tons, implying that it might have to import a large quantity of wheat.
A strong MAD would limit the inflationary impact rising imports could generate. Taking all these factors into consideration, the monetary authorities should prefer to maintain the status quo on the currency in the near term, even as pressures start to rise. We do not expect any sweeping policy changes, and not before Q4 2006. FX reform will most likely be gradual and preceded by measures to strengthen monetary policy and Morocco's financial system. http://www.ameinfo.com/62482.html
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Plans for sea fisheries management needed in Morocco.
Economics, 6/15/2005
The need to incept plans for the management of Moroccan sea fisheries to ensure the monitoring and the preservation of the sector's resources was highlighted by Hassan Chami, president of the Moroccan enterprises general Confederation (CGEM). Chami told the first fisheries meeting, sponsored by the Sea Industries Federation (FIM) and the CGEM, opened here Tuesday, of the problems of the sector because of over-fishing and the presence of foreign fishing boats in Moroccan waters and of the vital role of fisheries along the 3,500 km of the country's Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts.
Opening the meeting, Mohand Laensar, agriculture, rural development and sea fisheries minister, also highlighted sea resources protection that necessitates the commitment of the sector's users and measures likely to help take up the challenges posed to the sector in a world of globalisation and harsh competition. "Fishermen should be aware of the importance of responsible fishing," for it is a means to secure durability to the industry, Laensar said noting sea wealth conservation at the long run is preferable to short run benefits. The FAO conduct code on fishing practices is an excellent guide, which should be adopted by Morocco as a model to work out a code suiting its fisheries context, Laensar said.
Speaking at the meeting, ChargZ d'affaires of the European commission representation in Morocco, Oliver Ruyssen told of the European Union concern to set a rational and lasting system for fisheries management. He said the 6 million euros programme on support for professionals (PAAP) decided to help FIM, as it does to some 41 other professional associations. Fisheries play an important economic role in Morocco reaching MAD billions (1 euro= 11 dirhams or MAD) of investments, employing a 400,000 strong task force and earning Morocco MAD 8 billion. http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/050615/2005061529.html
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Morocco - Modernisation continues.
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 Weekly Report Commerzbank AG By Oliver Stoenner Email: Oliver.Stoenner@commerzbank.com Web:
* Economic trends are encouraging but the labour market situation keeps the government under tremendous reform pressure.
* The fiscal deficit requires appropriate measures, otherwise it could trigger negative reactions from the financial markets.
* Stronger direct investment inflows reflect the improvement in the investment climate.
* The currency peg is likely to be maintained. The real effective exchange rate has proven to be an effective anchor for the economy.
* Strained relations with Algeria remain a key hindrance for a stronger regional co-operation. Recent economic trends are sound, although GDP growth has been decelerating since last year.
Basically, GDP growth remained broad-based, supported by the favourable performance of the agricultural sector, which accounts for about 20% of GDP. This leaves the economy exposed to unstable weather conditions. However, the economy's easing during 2005-06 results from the slow growth momentum in the Euro area, Morocco's major export market. In contrast, the domestic economy is forecast to remain buoyant, with fixed investment and private consumption growth rates at about 7.0% and 5.5%, respectively.
Nevertheless, the government will have to advance the modernisation and liberalisation of the economy aimed at boosting GDP growth. The higher growth level over the recent years has led to a reduction in the unemployment rate from 14% in 1999 to slightly below 11% last year but pressure arises from the rapidly growing labour force. About a quarter of the population is between the age of 10 and 20. In addition, the labour market participation by women is increasing. Not surprisingly, job creation is also another policy challenge concerning the young, urban and well-educated job seekers. This social situation is the main reason for the government to adhere to its fiscal policy strategy despite a continuously high deficit.
The government is aware of the underlying weakness reflected by the fiscal deficit. Therefore, the medium-term fiscal strategy targets a gradual deficit reduction to about 3% of GDP by 2009, supported by assistance from the IMF and the World Bank. Consequently, the fiscal deficit has not yet been perceived by the financial markets as a disconcerting issue. Otherwise, interest rates would have been much more sensitive to the changes in US interest rates. In fact, Morocco's interest rate spread against US Treasuries, measured by the JP EMBIGD Index, remained broadly stable at around 160 basis points. We believe, this results from the declining debt -to- GDP ratio and the improved investment climate, which trigger stronger FDI inflows. Due to the fact that the liberalisation and modernisation process will have to be pursued, we expect FDI inflows to develop more stable over the period 2005-06.
The structural change process, facilitated by foreign direct investments, provides a strong argument for keeping the currency pegged to an undisclosed basket. The fairly stable real effective exchange rate remains a key anchor for the economy, which is characterised by the benign inflation environment. Economic stimulus should arise from the economy's increasing global trade integration. The Free Trade Agreement with the US will give Morocco a wide access to the US markets. Further trade agreements have been completed with Egypt, Tunesia and Jordan. However, the strained relations between Morocco and Algeria remain an important hindrance for a closer trade and financial integration of the region.
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