Rabat - The American University of Leadership (AUL) and the Association of Moroccan Professionals in America (AMPA) are co-sponsoring an International Education Conference on  June 3-4, 2016, at AUL’s corporate headquarters at the Zenith Center, in Hay Riad, Rabat, the capital of Morocco. 

The conference, entitled “Education for a Better Morocco,” will address important issues in education within the broader context of business, entrepreneurship, and the future economic growth of Morocco.  The conference will gather experts and decision makers to reflect on the crucial role of education in the economic and social development of Morocco, by creating a practical dialogue platform for the development of recommendations to strengthen and enhance Morocco’s educational system as a catalyst of sustainable, positive change.  The conference will also celebrate the official launch of AUL’s new American University of Leadership Morocco Foundation.

The main conference on Friday, June 3 will include presentations, panel discussions, and keynote speeches by prominent government leaders and specialists.  Dr. Lahcen Daoudi, Morocco’s Minister of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Training will offer keynote remarks and participate on the panel addressing the macro-economic educational issues.

The second day is a closed working group session, by invitation only, made up of experts in the field to begin developing specific proposals and recommendations as part of the ongoing dialogue.

Supported by strategic partners and sponsors, including the Washington-based Middle East and North Africa Consultants Association and media partner Morocco World News, the conference is a follow-on from AMPA’s Moroccan American Bridges 2015 conference held December 2015 in Washington, D.C., and is part of a continuing dialogue on education in Morocco, initiated by AMPA, among many of the participants and attendees.

Approximately 500 attendees are anticipated to attend, including Moroccan and U.S. government officials, Moroccan and American business leaders, and a diverse array of academics, educators, and other leaders in relevant fields.

The American University of Leadership Morocco Foundation (AULMF) is a nonprofit, non-governmental organization created by American University of Leadership (AUL) to enable private-public partnerships, enhance learning, entrepreneurship, research, and educational programs, and serve as the financial portal for philanthropic giving to AUL.

AMPA is a non-profit 501(c)(3) membership organization designed to develop and maintain a strong network of Moroccan professionals in the U.S., and to develop strategic trans-Atlantic alliances in Morocco and the U.S. to promote bilateral commercial exchanges between the two countries.

For more information and to register for the conference, visit http://events.aulm.us/education-for-a-better-morocco/.

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Rabat - A picture depicting a British-Moroccan girl named Layla is making its rounds on social media. In the image, she asks King Mohammed VI to lift Morocco’s ban on Skype so that she can talk to her grandparents.

The picture, which was posted on Facebook around 11 a.m. on Thursday, shows a 4-year-old girl holding a standard piece of paper with a message for Morocco’s King Mohammed VI.

“We live in the UK and we used to Skype grandma (Lmima) and grandad (jeddi) in Morocco everyday,” the paper reads. “Now we can’t and we miss them a lot. I am 4 years old, I am half Moroccan, and I love my grandparents. Please help us.”

Layla’s message refers to the National Telecommunications Regulatory Agency’s (ANRT) recent ban on VoIP-enabled services, which include popular mobile applications, such as Skype, Viber, and WhatsApp, and FaceTime.

The agency said it put the ban in place because the companies that operate the applications do not have a license from the government to provide VoIP services.

On Wednesday, a petition posted on Avaaz.com urged the Moroccan head of government Abdelilah Benkirane to repeal the ban. By Thursday, the petition gained the support of more than 5,000 signatures.

Inwi, one of Morocco’s telecom companies, has also opposed the ban, insisting that it “does not benefit” from it financially. The company also withdrew its sponsorship of the Maroc Web Awards in protest of the restrictions.

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Paris  -  France will intervene to support the European Council against December's EU court ruling on the Morocco-EU agriculture agreement, French Foreign Ministry said on Thursday.

"France, which is committed to EU-Morocco relations, calls on its European partners to act in the same direction with the aim of canceling the court's ruling," French Foreign Ministry spokesman told the press.

Last December, the European Court of Justice’s Eighth Chamber made a ruling annulling an enhancement of the agriculture agreement signed in 2012 between Morocco and the European Union.

Morocco has decided to suspend contacts with European institutions, except for exchanges on the appeal related to the EU-Morocco agriculture agreement.

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Rabat - The 2015 report by the International Narcotics Control Board reported that Morocco remains one of the world’s largest producers of cannabis and is Europe’s leading supplier of cannabis resin.

The UN-affiliated board noted that since its visit to the Moroccan government in 2009, the kingdom has demonstrated a “high” level of cooperation in anti-narcotics efforts, especially in the fields of preventing citizens from using cannabis, reducing the area of lands cultivating the plant, and treating narcotics addiction.

In 2013, Morocco reported that approximately 47,196 hectares of land were used to harvest cannabis within its borders. In light of Morocco’s efforts in reducing the prevalence of the plant, the board said it expects the country to meet its goal of decreasing cultivation to 34,000 acres by 2020.

Despite these gains in the control of cannabis production and consumption, Morocco is witnessing the rise of cocaine smuggling.

“While seizures of cannabis resin reported by the Moroccan authorities have declined significantly since 2012, the country is witnessing the emergence of the trafficking of cocaine, which is being smuggled on commercial flights from Brazil and transits through West Africa and Morocco in route to Europe,” the report read.

Additionally, the report said that although law enforcement efforts have reduced the acreage of land used for cannabis cultivation by 9.2% in between 2012 and 2013, the concentration of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in Moroccan cannabis continues to rise.

THC is the active element in the cannabis plant, which causes the “high” that occurs following consumption.

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By Jonathan Walsh

Rabat - Moroccan wheat crops are expected to amount to only half of last year’s harvest as this season’s drought takes its toll on the kingdom’s agriculture, official estimates show according to Bloomberg news.

A lack of rainfall is to blame for the poor grain harvest that Morocco relies so heavily upon. Other than a handful of rainy days in February, there has been little precipitation all season. Many farmers are saying that the rainfall was too little too late, in what they describe as “one of the worst droughts in living memory.”

As most meals are eaten with bread or contain wheat, Moroccans consume roughly three times the global average yearly.

While more developed countries may be able to limit the effects of poor rainfall, one of the main issues surrounding Moroccan agriculture is that only 15 percent of the land is irrigated. This means that harvests are almost solely dependent on natural rainfall.

“This kind of agriculture has no future,” said Abdelaziz Oumarrou, a farmer who lives near the city of Midelt. He, like so many others, supports his family from the wheat harvest.

“The harvest is going to be catastrophic; we must change and start doing things differently, such as irrigating,” he added.

As would be expected, the economy is set to suffer a knock-out effect from the drought. Estimates from Centre Morocain de Conjoncture suggest that growth will slow this year to just 1.2 percent—in comparison to 3.8 percent last year—as a direct result of the dry weather.

In January, King Mohammed VI called on the government to do more to tackle the widespread negative effects of the drought. Two sets of measures were implemented to maintain agricultural activity on his orders, protecting both plant and animal resources.

“In accordance with the High Royal Instructions, maintaining balance in rural areas remains a major focus of public policies and influences the series of actions to be taken,” an official source said.

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Rabat - Saudi businessman Mohammed Al Amoudi, the majority stakeholder in the debt-ridden Moroccan oil company Société Anonyme Marocaine de l'Industrie du Raffinage (SAMIR), has a net worth of $8.4 billion, according to the Forbes 2016 list of the world’s billionaires. 

This year, Forbes’ list ranked Al Amoudi as the world’s 138th richest billionaire, realizing most of his profits in the oil industry, agriculture, and construction projects. The business magazine also cited the half-Saudi, half-Ethiopian businessman as the largest single investor in Ethiopia, funding projects in agriculture, cement production, and gold mining. 

One of his oil ventures took place in Morocco. In May 1997, the Moroccan government sold a two-third’s stake in the country’s sole oil refinery, named SAMIR, to Al Amoudi’s company, Corral Petroleum Holdings, in accordance with the country’s privatization strategy that aimed to promote growth in the sector. 

After the refinery, located in Mohammedi, halted the production of oil last August due to “financial constraints”, the company witnessed two scandals that pointed to long-term mismanagement of the refinery. First, the government revealed that SAMIR owes the authorities MAD 13 billion in unpaid taxes and wants to reschedule the repayment of its bank debt of more than MAD 24 billion. Second, an unnamed high-ranking Moroccan official accused Al Amoudi of smuggling one billion tons of fuel outside the country annually without transferring the profits to Morocco. 

The scandals caused Al Amoudi’s relationship with the government to sour, which led him to flee the country in late August, leaving behind the company’s unpaid taxes and 950 unpaid employees. The Moroccan government seized the company’s bank accounts and assets due to the unpaid taxes.

Morocco’s head of government Abdelilah Benkirane later called the sale of the country’s only refinery to a foreigner a “serious mistake.” 

In October, SAMIR got the backing of its "extraordinary general assembly" to raise MAD 10.4 billion in order restart production at the refinery. The company said that as two-thirds shareholder, Al Amoudi would contribute two-thirds of the necessary capital or $675 million to the company by November 15th. However, it is unclear whether SAMIR ever received the funds.

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By Jonathan Walsh

Rabat - Moroccan blogger, Hind Touissate, has travelled all over the globe. She has spoken at conferences in Turkey, South Korea, Holland, Morocco, and France to spread her message of the importance of education and to inspire young women to fulfill their dreams. With her warm and engaging spirit, it is easy to be inspired by what she says.

This positivity has helped the 25 year old accomplish an incredible amount. From a blogger and traveler to a public speaker to a fashion designer, Touissate has done it all. I spoke to Touissate before her speech at this year’s third annual Aiesec event in Rabat.

What inspired you to do what you do?

Hind Touissate: I think it has always been my dream. I remember being five and watching this cartoon called Montana Jones. There was a lion that travels the world in a private plane to collect treasures and I realized I want to do that when I grow up!

When I was 18, I convinced my parents to book a flight with a bunch of friends (and a teacher) to Turkey, and that was the first time I traveled and the start of it all! So I promised myself that I would go back and live there. The mix between old and new, conservative and liberal–it was my personality!

Apart from the treasure part, I am living the life of that lion now.

How do events like Aiesec fit in with spreading your message?

Hind Touissate: When I first said that I wanted to travel, a lot of people criticized me. For them, a Muslim woman was not supposed to go without her father, husband, or someone to take care of her.

So for me, the message that I spread is that if you are a girl, Muslim or not, do not let people tell you what to do. If they believe in something, you do not have to believe the same thing. If you want to travel, then just travel, that’s the message I want to spread! Be that girl that people look up to.

Do you think attitudes towards women are changing?

Hind Touissate: Yes, drastically. A lot of my female friends travel and have blogs and share their experiences with the world. Just five years ago, none of this existed! So it is really changing and for the better. It’s great.

Have you faced any barriers in doing what you do?

Hind Touissate: The mean comments on YouTube or on my blog are one thing, but I ignore them. Aside from that, getting visas to travel places is always a challenge.

What would you tell any young Moroccan women who want to be in your position?

Hind Touissate: Just do it, dream and do! What keeps us from achieving our goals is doing, we all dream. Doing is the magic key. We all fail, but you have to stand up and do it again until it works.

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Brussels - High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini will visit Morocco on Friday, EU sources said Thursday in Brussels.

Mogherini will hold talks with a number of Moroccan officials following the kingdom's decision on February 25 to suspend its contact with the EU, except for exchanges on the appeal related to the EU-Morocco Agriculture Agreement.

On February 26, the European Union expressed in a statement its readiness "to provide all clarifications and additional assurances to address Morocco's concerns, so that contact and cooperation can be restored as soon as possible".

"It is our conviction that a true partnership implies listening, sharing, solidarity and mutual respect among partners", Federica Mogherini said.

With MAP

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Rabat - Christina Aguilera will perform at the 2016 Mawazine, Rhythms of the World festival on May 28 in Rabat, according to a statement released by organizers on Friday.

The performance, which will be held at the end of the 15th edition of the festival, will be the American artist’s first in Morocco. Aguilera will perform at the Olm Soussi stage at 9:45 pm during the last Saturday night of the nine-day event.

“Morocco is a place I have always wanted to visit and I am honored to have been invited to perform at the Mawazine festival,” Aguilera said to her fans in the statement. “I cannot wait to meet all the amazing fans and to explore the beautiful country.”

The American artist’s presence in the festival’s roster will bring the event a “balance” between regional and international acts,” according to organizers.

Born in 1980 in New York, Aguilera began her singing career as an eight-year-old by performing in a show called Star Search in the 1990s. When she turned 12, she began a role in one of Disney’s children’s television shows called Mickey Mouse Club, where she co-starred with then child-stars Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears.

In the 2000’s, the 35-year-old musician released several albums, including Stripped (2002) and Back to Basics (2006), each of which garnered millions of global sales.

During her past 20-years in the music industry, Aguilera has released a total of seven studio albums, won six Grammys, and become one of TIME magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world in 2013.

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Rabat - More Moroccan children in the diaspora, unable to talk to their loved ones in Morocco, are sending King Mohammed VI a message: lift the ban on VoIP-enabled services put in place by the National Telecommunications Regulatory Agency (ANRT).

On Thursday, a picture of a 4-year-old British-Moroccan girl, made its way around the social media for portraying the effects that the recent regulatory ban on Whatsapp, Skype, and Viber has had on Moroccans living abroad.

“We live in the UK and we used to Skype grandma (Lmima) and grandad (jeddi) in Morocco everyday,” Layla’s message reads on a standard piece of paper she used to cover her face. “Now we can’t and we miss them a lot. I am 4 years old, I am half Moroccan, and I love my grandparents. Please help us.”

Angela Arigoni-Mesfioui, an American woman currently living with her husband and four adopted children in Casablanca, said the ban has hindered her children’s ability to maintain relationships with their grandparents and birth parents.

“We are a family that uses Skype, Facebook, FaceTime, etc..,” Arigoni-Mesfioui said. “I have a large family back home and my children need to stay in touch with their birth families. All four of my kids are adopted and it is important that they can call home when they want.”

Her child, Jaqueline, age 9, and her friend's child Leon, age 2, shared similar messages imitating Layla’s style.

“We used to be able to Skype our family [in the US and France] everyday - and for them to see my brother who is 6,” Leon said. “But after the blockage of Skype by Moroccan companies, we can’t see our grandparents and they can’t see us either...Please whomever is responsible for allowing these people to keep our family from speaking to each other, can you please change your mind?”

Like Layla, Jaqueline directed her message directly to the king: “I am an American girl living in Morocco with my Moroccan dad and American mom. The problem is I can’t call my birth mother or birth grandmother because Skype and Facebook [Messenger] are blocked. I live so far from America and I love my family back home, please help!!!”

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Rabat - Spending of Russian tourists in Morocco has hit just over MAD 28 million last year, according to the latest data disclosed by the Moroccan Observatory of Tourism.

A report by the observatory said Russian tourists spent over MAD 1,203 every day during their visits to Morocco in 2015, a total of MAD 28.1 million in the whole year.

The report noted that 60 percent of Russian tourists who visited Morocco last year were accompanied with relatives, while 18 percent of them came in organized trips.

According to the same source, Russian tourists spent over 49 percent of their overnight stays in rated hotels, compared to 45 percent of night stays in Riads and rented apartments, across the country.

The report said 34 percent of Russian tourists visit museums and historical monuments during their stay in Morocco, while 23 percent of them prefer to spend their stays traveling across Moroccan cities.

The same source added that only 20 percent of them like to spend their holidays, sightseeing in Moroccan coastal cities.

Agadir remains Russian Tourists’ favorite destination in Morocco, the report said, noting that 72 percent of their night stays in Morocco were registered in Agadir.

Earlier in January, Director General of the Moroccan National Tourist Office (ONMT) Abderrafie Zouiten revealed that Morocco is seeking to attract over 200,000 Russian tourist a year, starting out from this year.

“Russia is a priority market for Moroccan Tourism. ONMT has devised an ambitious strategy to attract more Russian tourists in 2016,” he concluded.

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Rabat - In a push to stimulate an increase in voice revenues for local operators, in early January Morocco moved to limit access to select Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services such as Viber, Skype, WhatsApp and Facebook, Oxford Business Group (OBG) said on Friday.

The new ban, which the authorities hope will prompt a resurgence in average revenue per user rates for industry players, is part of a broader collaborative effort between the regulator and private sector to improve growth prospects, and sees Morocco follow in the footsteps of other countries in the region, including Egypt, Oman and the UAE, where such over-the-top (OTT) platforms have already been curtailed, OBG added.

Over the long term, the regulator aims to encourage Moroccan operators to invest in expanding internet infrastructure to keep pace with growing demand for data services.

The ban, which applies to Morocco’s three main mobile operators – Maroc Télécom, which is majority owned by the UAE’s Etisalat; Méditel, a local affiliate of France’s Orange; and Inwi, which is owned by local company Wana – was met with protest from customers.

However, the National Agency for Telecommunications Regulations (ANRT) noted that the blocked VoIP services were unlicensed and failed to "respond to the required legal gateway," the source pointed out.

The push to encourage usage of domestic services – as opposed to OTT and VoIP platforms – is understandable, given the headwinds Morocco’s telcos have faced in recent years, with call volumes and revenues impacted by the surge in popularity of social media platforms and mobile apps. High-margin international calls, in particular, have suffered as Moroccan customers increasing turned to the internet for free voice and video calling.

In a report released in June, the ANRT estimated that 92.8 percent of Moroccans had Facebook accounts, while 56.7 percent had WhatsApp, 44.1 percent used Google+ and 25.1 percent were on Twitter. Some 42.1 percent of those surveyed used the internet to make phone calls and more than half used online instant messaging services.

"The long-term challenge for the telecoms sector is the increasing competition from international actors that do not fall under the umbrella of a national regulator," Azdine El Mountassir Billah, CEO of the ANRT, told OBG.

The slowdown in revenues in Morocco has been replicated to a wide degree in emerging markets throughout the region, prompting some innovative – and collaborative – thinking by both operators and the regulator to spark renewed growth.

According to Arab Advisors Group, a Jordan-based industry research and consultancy firm, while Morocco’s pre-paid rates for services are considered to be mid-range among Arab countries, its post-paid rates rank as the lowest in the region, OBG added.

In many ways, Morocco’s telecoms sector is in robust health, with overall demand rising steadily. Last year, for example, the country saw a nearly 15 percent increase in post-paid mobile subscribers. The 2009 to 2014 period also saw a marked rise in the use of mobile services, with mobile voice usage rising from 10bn to 47bn minutes between 2009 and 2014.

However, in spite of the jump in users, average revenue per minute eased by 16 percent year-on-year (y-o-y) to Dh0.27 (€0.02), continuing a downward trend.

According to the ANRT, prices – particularly in the mobile voice segment – fell by nearly 75 percent between 2009 and 2014, marking a significantly steeper decline than the expected 40 percent. This has had an impact on sector-wide revenues, which slid by approximately Dh4bn (€367.1m) over the period to Dh33bn (€3bn).

As the industry regulator, the ANRT has traditionally overseen the expansion of infrastructure to facilitate nationwide coverage. However, with OTT competition on the rise, the agency has shifted its focus to helping established players adapt their business model to the changing operating environment.

Among its suggestions, the government is encouraging operators to co-invest in and share telecoms infrastructure, especially in less densely populated areas.

"Telecoms is going through important changes worldwide," El Mountassir Billah told OBG. "In Morocco, we are particularly concerned about shrinking revenues for national operators due to a lack of new sources of data revenue. Nonetheless, there are still opportunities to be tapped in terms of expanding the internet infrastructure."

According to El Mountassir Billah, the focus must now be on attracting new sources of revenues to help operators compensate for shrinking margins.

With a focus on monetising data services and infrastructure sharing, the industry is on track to reverse the decline seen in recent years to reach sector-wide revenues of around Dh34bn (€3.1bn) by 2018, the ANRT forecasts.

Key to achieving this is the regulator’s target of providing all citizens with broadband access, at a minimum speed of 2 Mbps, by 2022.

As of the end of 2015, there were 14.5m internet subscribers in the kingdom for a penetration rate of 42.8 percent. Internet access grew by 45.2 percent year-on-year, more than doubling the 5.77m subscribers recorded in 2013.

The vast majority of subscriptions were for mobile internet, with ADSL subscribers accounting for just 7.8 percent of the total.

MWN with MAP

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Rabat - For the special occasion of the international women’s day, Moroccan magazine Challenge has dedicated its monthly edition to honor 60 women leaders in Morocco.

The French-speaking magazine has published a list of women who stand out for their commitments and actions. The publication of the list comes few days ahead of the International Women’s Day, which is celebrated on March 8 of every year.

Through these 60 profiles, the magazine aims to highlight the key role of women’s leadership in the kingdom. The goal of this initiative is to celebrate women’s outstanding contributions in various fields: from politics, to business, medicine, development, sports and sciences.

This unique edition has recognized 60 women who have gained credibility through their work, and who inspire other women in Morocco and beyond. Hence, the magazine highlights the achievements of their Highnesses Princesses Lalla Salma, Lalla Meryem, Lalla Hasnaa, and Lalla Asmaa; social activist Aicha Ech-chenna; business leader Mrs. Miriem Bensalah; political leader Nabila Mounib, young leader Lamia Bazir, and many other women.

Morocco World News would like to congratulate all the amazing ladies highlighted on this list and hopes their work will catalyze even more progress in our country.

The full list of the 60 women leaders is as follows:

H.H. Princess Lalla Salma

H.H. Princess Lalla Meryem

H.H. Princess Lalla Hasnaa

H.H. Princess Lalla Asmaa

Naziha Abakrim

Salwa Akhannouch

Nadia Fettah Alaoui

Soumia Amrani

Yasmina Baddou

Lamia Bazir

Karima Benaich

Souad Benbachir

Amina Benkhadra

Salima Benhima

Dr. Leila Meziane Benjelloun

Fathia Bennis

Miriem Bensalah Chaqroun

Nadia Bernoussi

Nada Biaz

Mbarka Bouaida

Amina Bouayach

Ilham Boumehdi

Zakia Daoud

Aicha Ech-chenna

Latifa Echihabi

Zineb El Adaoui

Monique El Grichi

Hakima El Haite

Nawal El Moutawakil

Ghita Lahlou El Yacoubi

Nadia Fassi Fehri

Ghizlane Guedira

Nadira El Guermai

Kenza Halloul

Nezha Hayat

Milouda Hazib

Ilham Hraoui

Latifa Jbabdi

Ahlam Jebbar

Farida Jirari

Lalla Joumala

Saloua Karkri-Belkeziz

Asmaa Lamrabet

Saida Karim Lamrani

Nadia Laraki

Hakima Lebbar

Amina Lemrini Elouahabi

Amina Maad

Zahra Maafiri

Laila Mamou

Fadwa Megzari

Nabila Mounib

Laila Ouachi

Dayae oudghiri

Fatima Zahra Outaghani

Samira Sitail

Neila Tazi

Mouna Yaacoubi

Faouzia Zaaboul

Rita Maria Zniber

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Rabat - Moroccan police arrested 40,435 people suspected of committing various crimes in February, according to the latest figures from the General Directorate of National Security (DGSN) reported by Magreb Press Agency (MAP).

The data, released on Friday, showed that the average arrest rate for the DGSN as a whole comes out to be 1,394 people per day.

The crimes associated with the arrests varied widely according to the data. Police interventions led to the arrest of 2,080 people for committing physical acts of violence, 1866 people for theft, and 699 people for molestation. In addition, 24 people were arrested for murder, 1149 for planned robbery, and 153 for sexual assaults and other crimes, according to the same source.

A total of 27,248 people were arrested while they committed the crime and 13,187 people were arrested for a crime they had committed previously.

Fez experienced a high rate of arrests between October 20th and November 23rd of last year, which led Mohammed Hassad, the Minister of the Interior, to declare Fez “a clean city.” The police in Fez arrested over 4,000 people over the course of a period lasting a little over a month.

The increased number of arrests - 3,000 of which happened within 15 days - came after three German tourists were assaulted in the Old Medina of the historical city.

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Rabat - City Bus, the company in charge of urban transportation in Fez, has reportedly equipped its buses with free Wi-Fi 4G service for its clients, according to Menara.ma.

Ali El Moutie, CEO of City Bus, announced on Wednesday during a ceremony that the project to upgrade the buses with the latest generation of Wi-Fi is expected to cost approximately MAD 1,600,000.

At the beginning of the process, the urban transportation company only outfitted six buses with the service. Now, the company will begin to upgrade the rest of the fleet.

The CEO went on to add that City Bus is planning to improve the quality of urban transportation in Fez by launching a system that enables clients to pay for tickets by credit card in order to reduce prices on some of the scheduled routes.

Moutie explained that a ticket costing MAD 4 would drop to MAD 3.80, a ticket costing MAD 3.50 would drop to MAD 3.35, and a ticket costing MAD 3 would cost MAD 2.90.

The CEO noted that all users, including students and officials, are eligible to benefit from the new service via credit card.

The urban transportation company has almost 100 vehicles that provide transportation services to 30 destinations within Fez and its surrounding region.

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By Asmaa Bahadi

Rabat - Around the world, many events take place every year on World Kidney Day to spread awareness about preventive behaviors, awareness about risk factors, and awareness about how to live with a kidney disease.

On March 3, on the occasion of the World Kidney Day and the second French-Moroccan meeting on nephrology issues, The Moroccan Association for the Fight of Kidney Diseases organized a lunch debate at the Mohammed V Foundation for Solidarity in Casablanca, to speak about the severity of acuteness diseases especially for children.

Only some 100 kidney transplantations were made in Morocco in the past 20 years, said nephrologist Professor Amal Bourquia, comparing the figure with the number of transplant surgeries in Spain, where 5,500 such operations were conducted in 2005. Mrs. Bourquia, also the chairwoman of the Moroccan Association for the Fight of Kidney Diseases, deplored the lack of information about “kidney transplantation in Morocco and the little interest in people suffering from renal diseases.”

Professor Bourquia insisted on taking charge of kidney deficiency patients, because of the excessive cost of medication, adding a haemodialysis session is charged at MAD 15,000 (USD 1,525) and transplant surgery costs MAD 200,000 (USD 20,336). Kidney transplants, which can save lives, should be a national fight, she said, adding that the practice faces difficulties owing to the means and equipment needed and cannot be developed unless all concerned parties get effectively involved, calling for a national strategy to remedy the situation.

World Kidney Day aims to raise awareness of the importance of our kidneys to our overall health and to reduce the frequency and impact of kidney disease and its associated health problems worldwide. Participants in World Kidney Day events seek to encourage the systematic screening of all patients with diabetes and hypertension for CKD (chronic kidney disease) and preventive behaviors, as well as educating all medical professionals about their key role in detecting and reducing the risk of CKD, particularly in high risk populations.

In addition, World Kidney Day stresses the important role of local and national health authorities in controlling the CKD epidemic. On World Kidney Day all governments are encouraged to take action and invest in further kidney screening and encouraging transplants as a best-outcome option for kidney failure, and the act of organ donation as a life-saving initiative.

Kidney disease can affect children in various ways, ranging from treatable disorders without long-term consequences to life-threatening conditions.

Acute kidney failure is a serious condition that develops suddenly. It often lasts a short time, and may disappear completely once the underlying cause has been treated and if the patient receives the needed medical management. It can also have long-lasting consequences with life-long problems.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) doesn’t disappear with treatment, and tends to worsen over time. CKD eventually leads to kidney failure (end-stage kidney disease) and needs to be treated with a kidney transplant or blood-filtering treatments (dialysis) for life.

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Rabat - King Mohammed VI took pictures with several Moroccans in Paris during a stroll in the French capital on Thursday and Friday.

The king appeared without his traditional protocol.

On Thursday, the king took a picture next to a Moroccan man after discovering that he was a municipal sanitation worker engaged in keeping Paris clean.

The next day, the king was spotted in two more pictures on Facebook. The first picture, taken around 5 p.m., depicted the king and two young Moroccan girls on Champs-Élysées Avenue, a street in the eighth arrondissement, or sector, of Paris known for its luxury shops, theatres, and annual military parade.

“Thank God, the king is our caretaker” Ridwan, a man who commented on the photo, said. “To Moroccans, he is a merciful helper. His goodwill is ever present, he gives without limits, he is modest wherever he comes and goes, and he lives under the protection of his people with personality, power, and popularity.”

In the second picture, taken by his majesty’s personal guard, the king is surrounded by four Moroccan women who currently live in Paris.

The pictures confirm the safety of the King during his vacation to a variety of regions in France. He was rumored to have returned to Morocco on Thursday. Later, an official confirmed that the king was still in France, according to Hespress.

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