After approving the general guidelines of the 2024 Finance Bill, Morocco’s Council of Ministers approved a draft law and a draft decree relating to a military field.
The bill is meant to confer the status of Wards of the Nation on children who were victims of the “Al Haouz earthquake”, which struck this province on September 08, 2023, and whose impact also affected the prefecture of Marrakech and the provinces of Chichaoua, Taroudant, Ouarzazate and Azilal.
The new measures are aimed at improving the material situation and living conditions, of the disaster victims by entitling each person with the status of Ward of the Nation, on an individual basis, to the lump-sum allowance reserved for Wards of the Nation, regardless of the number of members taken into care, instead of providing for a single allowance shared equally between the children of the same family.
The package also includes, Implementing the “Program for the reconstruction and general upgrading of the regions affected by the Al Haouz earthquake”, as well as reinforcing measures to combat cyclical impacts: In application of the High Royal Instructions, this program will be implemented rapidly, using an integrated approach and coordinated governance.
It will be based on the establishment of the High Atlas Development Agency within a conventional framework involving all stakeholders, with contributions from the General State Budget, local authorities, the Special Solidarity Fund dedicated to managing the effects of the earthquake and the Hassan II Fund for Economic and Social Development, in addition to international support and cooperation.