Launch of the third women's support programme in Morocco
During the last monthly session of the House of Representatives, Moroccan Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch announced the launch of the third plan for equality, as well as the increase in financial support for women in the 2024 Finance Law.
In this session of the House of Representatives, Akhannouch has made the last relevant consultations to program the budget of each sector with the commitment to women's economic empowerment. According to the Moroccan media Rue20, the Prime Minister explained that, "to continue the responsible participation in the international system of women's rights, and in the framework of promoting the status of women in times of peace and armed conflict, and the management of humanitarian crises, our country has committed itself responsibly and seriously to the international agenda for women, peace and security, as it launched the Kingdom's national plan on women, peace and security in March 2022".
The UN Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women praised in 2022 the efforts and achievements made by the Moroccan government in terms of progress made in the field of women's rights in Morocco. The Committee praised reforms such as the Centre of Excellence for Gender Responsive Budgeting, established in 2013; the "Wadhiyati" programme 2015-2017 aimed at improving the prospects and employability of women in the labour market; the plan for the higher education sector 2017-2021; the National Strategy 2030 to combat violence against women and girls; or the national programme for the economic empowerment of women and girls "Maroc-Attamkine", aimed at increasing the employment rate of women to 30%.
The Prime Minister also stated that, "as part of our country's desire to continue to adhere to the international system for the protection of women's rights, the documents of accession to the two optional protocols annexed to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women were deposited on 22 April 2022 and entered into force in July 2022".
Since the establishment of the 2011 Constitution, women's rights have been gradually improved. Article 19 of the Moroccan Constitution states that "men and women enjoy, on an equal footing, rights and freedoms of a civil, political, economic, social, cultural and environmental nature", this article has been supported numerous times by different ratifications in Moroccan law. As for the empowerment of women, in 2021, the Parliament created a new amendment to promote a balanced representation of women and men in corporate governance bodies, establishing mandatory quotas for women, with a target of 30% female representation by 2024.
Akhannouch defended during this session the Moroccan government's commitment to the development of women through the improvement of living conditions, the creation of public policies of an economic, social and political nature, as well as participation in Moroccan society in public and private institutions.
