🇲🇦Week of November 2

The High Commission for Former Resistance Members and Liberation Army Members said the commemoration reflects a peaceful popular march that recovered the Moroccan Sahara and strengthened residents' attachment to their Moroccanness, within the historical ties of allegiance between the population and the throne. It described the anniversary as taking place in an atmosphere of comprehensive national mobilization to entrench the Moroccanness of the Sahara on the basis of autonomy.1

The anniversary falls in a context different from previous years, with the UN mission in Western Sahara, known as MINURSO, withdrawing and the political track continuing. House of Representatives speaker Ahmed Touizi said the decision not to extend MINURSO's mandate ends a 35-year track and opens a new phase in the Western Sahara file, and he urged parliament to keep up its mobilization on the issue.234

Touizi called for an end to the suffering of detainees held in the Tindouf camps. He said the new phase in the Sahara requires consolidating gains and strengthening development, and he described the Security Council decision on MINURSO as a decisive turning point toward settling the dispute.546

The president of the UN General Assembly, Khalil al-Rahman, has called a formal plenary session for Tuesday 10 November to discuss Russia's use of the veto in the Security Council on the Western Sahara file. The session follows the Council's failure on 30 October to adopt a US-drafted resolution that would have changed the structure and tasks of the UN mission in Western Sahara, in line with Security Council resolution 2797. The US holds the pen on the file.1234

Russia vetoed the US draft at the 30 October vote, leaving the UN mission without an extension of its mandate. Moroccan outlets describe the lapse as the end of a 35-year track. Parliament Speaker Ahmed Touizi said the developments opened a new phase in the dispute, arguing the grounds on which the mission was built no longer exist, and called for an end to the suffering of detainees in the Tindouf camps.5678

King Mohammed VI chaired a working session at the royal palace in Rabat on Wednesday 4 November to follow the period after the end of the mission's duties, and instructed that an office for coordination with the mission, attached to the interior ministry, oversee its liquidation and withdrawal. The king affirmed that the ceasefire continues.56

The National Ports Agency (ANP) and the French Development Agency (AFD) signed a joint declaration in Rabat on Tuesday 3 November for the third financing of their partnership, worth a total of 100 million euros. The money is dedicated to developing infrastructure in the southern provinces and to the transition toward green ports.123

The declaration was signed by the director general of the ANP and the AFD, according to TelQuel's account of the ceremony. Aujourd'hui le Maroc describes the agreement as a new strategic partnership covering port infrastructure in the south and the shift to green ports.13

State broadcaster 2M and the business outlet La Vie Éco carried the same figure and the same purpose, framing the signature as the third financing tranche of the ANP-AFD partnership. No outlet reported a different amount or a different destination for the funds.42

Mauritanian administrative authorities warned citizens in border areas next to Western Sahara to exercise caution, avoid zones where the border line is unclear, and return to national territory if they are outside it. The warnings were directed at residents of several border districts, particularly in the Dakhlet Nouadhibou region, and also covered cattle herders and nomadic groups.12

The measures come as the UN mission MINURSO is being liquidated. UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric disclosed details of the drawdown, including the withdrawal of 340 personnel and the closure of 13 sites.34

Moroccan House of Representatives speaker Ahmed Touizi said the decision not to extend MINURSO's mandate ends a 35-year track and opens a new phase in the Western Sahara file, and he urged parliament to keep up its mobilization on the issue. He also demanded an end to the suffering of detainees held in Tindouf.56

Benabdallah also briefed the committee on progress in carrying out the social dialogue agreements of 10 and 26 December 2023, including compensation for teachers and the settlement of outstanding claims files. He met representatives of the national associations of pupils' parents on Monday, who raised concerns about the state of the education system.123

The 2027 draft budget cuts vocational training funding by 200 million dirhams even as the government raises targets for qualifying young people, according to the education and vocational training ministry's budget bill.4

Morocco's draft 2027 finance bill puts purchasing power at the centre of debate by adjusting the income tax scale, a measure that would raise the net income of the salaried workers it covers if implemented. The bill also strengthens its social component, with the government committing significant budget resources to household expectations and access to essential services.12

A gender-sensitive budget report accompanying the draft finds that only 19 percent of Moroccan women participate in the labour market, despite progress in schooling and training. The report cites unemployment, wage inequality, difficulty accessing financing and a lack of childcare structures.3

The fiscal record of the past five years, described as consolidation and improved profitability of public finances, gave the new government room to manoeuvre on tax measures in the draft.4

Attributed claim: TelQuel argues that the income tax cut alone does not capture living standards, since the standard of living depends on more than the salary received. The outlet frames the payroll gain as a partial picture of household welfare.1

Morocco's government will continue its exceptional direct support for road transport operators carrying passengers and goods, issuing a new tranche of diesel aid covering a 15-day period. The government said the measure is meant to cushion the sector from continued rises in petroleum product prices on international markets and their effect on the national market.123

The new payment begins on 10 November, according to the government's announcement. The aid is the latest extension of a scheme the government has kept running for road hauliers rather than a one-off payment.34

The government communication office said the decision falls within the accompanying measures it is taking for the road transport sector. It did not state a total value for the new tranche in the published announcements.21

Morocco's booksellers' association says shortages of school textbooks persist at institutions in the pioneer schools programme, at both primary and lower-secondary level. It holds the Ministry of National Education, Preschool and Sports responsible for monitoring book distribution and ensuring titles reach bookshops. Speculation has pushed the price of some titles above their set prices, the association said.1

In a complaint to the education minister, the association asked for an urgent and comprehensive investigation into why the shortages continue, particularly for the textbooks approved for pioneer schools. It called for legal and administrative responsibility to be assigned to any parties found to have breached their obligations. The association holds the ministry, publishers and distributors responsible for the failures in supplying and distributing the books.2

The association also asked the minister to intervene to stop the shortages and to open an investigation that identifies their causes and the parties responsible. It said the channels that distribute school books should be examined, and that publishers and distributors should be checked for compliance with their commitments, with legal and administrative consequences for each violation.3

Morocco's Directorate General of Meteorology (DGM) forecast thunderstorms with hail and wind gusts across several provinces on Monday and Tuesday. Showers of 20 to 30 mm were expected Monday from 13:00 to 23:00 in Es-Semara, Oued Ed-Dahab, Boujdour and Assa-zag.12

The stormy showers were expected to spread Tuesday to other regions of the Kingdom, the DGM said.312

Attributed claim: Outlets differed on the rainfall total. TelQuel and Aujourd'hui le Maroc, citing the DGM, put the showers at 20 to 30 mm, while La Vie Éco reported up to 40 mm of rain expected in several provinces.312