Virtual Magazine of Morocco on the Web
Morocco Week in Review 
December 4 2004

New Peace Corps Volunteers to Work in Youth and Small Business Development Sectors in Rural Morocco
Colin Powell to become co-President of Morocco for the Future Forum
AIDS: 1,507 cases in Morocco
Over 3pc of Moroccans affected by HCV, meeting
Informal sector contributes 40pc to Morocco's GDP
Web site to 'expose' violence against women in Morocco
Morocco's unemployment to its lowest in two years
In 10 years, 30 000 cinema seats have disappeared
Casablanca hosts the national conference of medicine at work
First English-speaking tv channel for Muslims in America goes on air
Silicon Valley enterprises explore Moroccan market
Morocco lifts ban on Importation of thorough-bred bovines
Need to reform local taxation system to attract foreign investments, King
Morocco inaugurates new phase in human rights development, Moroccan Red Crescent Organization
Democracy, economy, education, key elements for change, King

New Peace Corps Volunteers to Work in Youth and Small Business Development Sectors in Rural Morocco
Morocco TIMES 29/11/2004

A group of new Peace Corps volunteers were officially sworn in a ceremony held at the Hotel Kenzi Azghor in Ouarzazate on Monday, November 29th. The United States Ambassador to Morocco, Thomas T. Riley, attended the ceremony and addressed the volunteers and their host families. Morocco's Peace Corps Director, Bruce J. Cohen, presided over the ceremony and expressed his appreciation for the support of Ouarzazate's Governor, Ahmed Merghich, who also participated in the event.

The new Peace Corps volunteers have completed eleven weeks of intensive training in Berber languages of Tashelhit and Tamazight, in Moroccan Arabic, and in cross-cultural communications skills. They also received country and sector specific technical training. These new volunteers will work for two years in the sectors of Small Business Development and Youth Development in predominantly rural Moroccan communities. In the Small Business Development sector, the volunteers' objective will be to assist local artisans to improve the quality and marketability of their crafts, as well as, their organizational, business management and marketing capabilities. Volunteers in the Youth Development sector are assigned to work along with a Government counterpart at a "Dar Chebab" or Youth Center. The volunteers' objective will be to teach English and organize activities that both focus on relevant community issues such as HIV/AIDS, the environment, gender, health concerns, etc. and develop and improve skills such as leadership, teamwork, collaboration, cooperation, and self-esteem.

All Peace Corps volunteers come to Morocco not only with the skills required to help on various technical assistance projects, but also with a personal willingness to learn the local languages and to live in local communities. They are here to advance the Peace Corps mission of fostering world peace, friendship and understanding through technical assistance, and are only paid a subsistence allowance during their two years of service in Morocco.

The Peace Corps was founded in 1961 at the direction of President John F. Kennedy. The first Peace Corps volunteers came to Morocco in 1963, in accordance with a Morocco-U.S. agreement. Since then, more that 4,200 volunteers have served in Morocco giving various vocational training courses and extending other social services.
http://www.moroccotimes.com/paper/article.asp?idr=11&id=1063 
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Colin Powell to become co-President of Morocco for the Future Forum.

The American secretary of state Colin Powell is to co-Preside the Moroccan Forum for the Future together with the Moroccan foreign minister Mohamed Benaïssa. The Forum is due to take place December 11 in Rabat, according to PANA, which bases its report on an official source in the Moroccan capital. This meeting will bring together North African and Middle East foreign and finance ministers together with ministers from the G8 group of industrialized countries. Subjects that top the agenda include democracy, economic development and civil society dialogue. The American delegation will be made of senior officials, including John Snow, a treasury official. The Forum was first set up during a meeting of North African and Middle East foreign and finance ministers held September 24 in New York. © 2004 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
http://www.albawaba.com/en/countries/Morocco/178116 
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AIDS: 1,507 cases in Morocco
Rabat, Nov. 30

Morocco accounts for 1,507 HIV/AIDS cases, according to figures released by the Moroccan Health Ministry on the epidemiological situation of AIDS up to 30 September 2004. The same source revealed that 38pc of persons infected with the disease are women, adding that seroprevalence in pregnant women is estimated at 0.13pc. Although the epidemiological situation seems stable, AIDS represents a growing danger particularly for women, deemed President of the Pan-African Organization to combat AIDS, Nadia Bezzad. Women, Girls, HIV and AIDS is the theme of the 2004 World AIDS day, celebrated on December 1st.

According to UNAIDS estimates, "there were 37.2 million adults and 2.2 million children living with HIV at the end of 2004, and during the year 4.9 million new people became infected with the virus." "Around half of all people who become infected with HIV do so before they are 25 and are killed by AIDS before they are 35. 95% of the total number of people with HIV/AIDS live in the developing world. But HIV still remains a threat to people of all ages and nationalities," said UNAIDS.
http://www.map.co.ma/mapeng/home_dep/mad_1.htm 
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Over 3pc of Moroccans affected by HCV, meeting.
Health, 11/30/2004

Over 3 percent of the population in Morocco is affected by Hepatitis C virus (HCV), that has become a public health issue in the country, it was revealed at a meeting here Monday. HCV cases in Morocco range from 300,000 to 600,000, warned participants in the meeting held under the theme "making tests, means possibility to heal," organized by NGO "SOS Hepatitis C" in collaboration with the Health Ministry.

The encounter insisted that an efficient preventive action against HCV is crucial to stop the spread of the disease that "may show no symptoms." In the absence of a vaccine, prevention and hygiene are the best means to fight this contagious disease, said participants, who called for further campaigns to raise public awareness about the disease.
http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/041130/2004113016.html 
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Informal sector contributes 40pc to Morocco's GDP.
RABAT, Dec.03

The Informal sector contributes nearly 40 percent to Morocco's GDP, that is the equivalent of 180 billion Dhs (around US $20 billion) per year, stated Morocco's minister in charge of Economic and General Affairs. Rachid Talbi Alami, who was speaking during the House of Representatives question-time session, said the informal sector accounts for over 1,2 million production units generating more than 2 million jobs, that is 20 percent of job opportunities in the national market.

Nearly 72pc of these units, he said, are located in big cities and their surrounding. According to the minister, the proliferation of informal activities is due to the complexity of red tape, obstacles hindering access to markets and heavy taxes. The government, which grants a particular importance to the trade sector, has devoted a budget of 105 million Dhs (around US $11.6 million) to carry out 114 projects in 29 provinces, he said, noting that this move will benefit 13,000 tradesmen.
http://www.map.co.ma/mapeng/home_dep/h_depmay26.htm 
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Web site to 'expose' violence against women in Morocco
3 December 2004 RABAT

Moroccan women's rights associations have announced launching of a web site aimed at "exposing" violence against women in the country. According to Amina Tafnaut, coordinator of the Moroccan network of centres for legal counselling of women victims of domestic violence, the the main focus of the web site is to create awareness about the phenomenon, expose it and try to monitor it throughout the country. "Violence against women is widespread in the Moroccan society, particularly among married couples," she said. But the network does not have the exact statistics of victims of domestic violence.
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data/middleeast/2004/December/middleeast_December64.xml&section=middleeast&col= 
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Morocco's unemployment to its lowest in two years.
Borsa Italiana 12:32 1-Dec-04 RABAT, Dec 1 (Reuters)

Morocco's unemployment rate fell to 10.9 percent in the third quarter of 2004, its lowest level in more than two years, due mainly to a good agricultural campaign, a state body said on Wednesday. The rate stood at 12.4 percent a year earlier, the High Planning Commission said in a statement. Unemployment reached 11.6 percent in the first half of 2004. In urban and rural areas, the jobless rate fell to 17.5 and 3.0 percent from 19.1 and 4.1 percent respectively in the third quarter of 2003, the commission added.

"Unemployment in the third quarter reached its lowest level since the second quarter of 2002," a senior commission official told Reuters. Two straight years of abundant rain and good harvests boosted job creation in the third quarter which coincides with the harvest period, he said. "Rural areas benefited more from this rise in employment," he said, adding it was unclear if the trend would be sustained in the last quarter of the year. Unemployment in Morocco is calculated based on a workforce of some 11 million aged above 15. "The specific nature of employment in Morocco dictates such calculation method," the official said. In fellow North African country Tunisia, for example, the workforce's age is 18-60. All forms of economic activity count in Morocco, including the grey economy and tens of thousands of people working on small family-run farming parcels.Agriculture employs 40 percent of the workforce and accounts for up to 15 percent of the country's gross domestic product.
((Reporting by Souhail Karam, Reuters Messaging:souhail.karam.reuters.com@reuters.net ; +212-37 720065)) Copyright 2000 Reuters Limited.
http://www.borsaitalia.it/fwa-cgi-bin/news.pl?id=1101904158nL01268297&tit=Morocco 
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In 10 years, 30 000 cinema seats have disappeared.

In ten years, some 30,000 cinema seats have disappeared in Morocco, according to the Moroccan internet news sources, La Vie eco. This is blamed on piracy infringements and the lack of good service in cinemas. Cinema attendance fell by 75% in the first few quarters of 2004 as opposed to 2003. The building of the luxury cinema 2002 in the Megarama complex had a profound change on the market and many smaller cinema companies simply could not compete any longer with the state of the art facilities appearing across the country. (albawaba.com)
http://www.albawaba.com/headlines/TheNews.php3?action=story&sid=289721&lang=e&dir= 
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Casablanca hosts the national conference of medicine at work

The thirteenth national congress of the Moroccan medical society is being held Saturday and Sunday at Casablanca. This congress will bring together numerous national and foreign experts. The aim is to raise questions of mutual concern and to brainstorm regarding preventative medicine and hygiene in the work place.

According to a press release of the congress, infectious diseases caught at the work place are the number one cause of mortality in Morocco. The most common of these diseases are hepatitis B and C. There will also be discussions on psychology and how this often causes respiratory problems in the work place. The professions most at risk are policeman and the emergency services. The Moroccan government claims to be considering stricter legislation for combating fatal diseases at the work place by raising standards of hygiene.
http://www.albawaba.com/headlines/TheNews.php3?action=story&sid=289764&lang=e&dir= 
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First English-speaking tv channel for Muslims in America goes on air
WASHINGTON, Dec.02 (MAP)

"Bridges TV", the first English-speaking TV channel for Muslims in the USA and Canada premiered on Tuesday, broadcasting from Buffalo, NY. Bridges TV will be subscriber and advertiser supported and will target primarily the 8 million Muslims of North America in English. Bridges TV will feature English language programs focused on celebrating the American Muslim lifestyle and culture.

The launch of Bridges TV comes at a time when the Muslim community around the world is now, more than ever, in the spotlight, said its founder and CEO, Muzzammil Hassan. "Every day on television we are barraged by stories of a 'Muslim extremist, militant, terrorist, or insurgent.' But the stories that are missing are the countless stories of Muslim tolerance, progress, diversity, service and excellence that Bridges TV hopes to tell" he said.

"World heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali, a subscriber of the network, believes that Bridges TV will allow Americans to get to know American
Muslims the way they would get to know their next door neighbor, seeing them everyday in natural situations at work and at home. "Bridges TV gives American Muslims a voice of their own on the airwaves for Americans of all races and religions to hear," said Ali. According to a 2000 survey by the Arab-American Institute, the American Muslim population of 7 million is expected to more than double to 15 million in the next ten years. Bridges TV is expected to be licensed to broadcast in Canada by summer 2005.
http://www.map.co.ma/mapeng/eng.htm 
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Silicon Valley enterprises explore Moroccan market.
RABAT, Dec.02

A group of leading US high-tech enterprises and dozens of others from the Silicon Valley are exploring prospects of partnership with Moroccan researchers. Texas Instruments, Agilent Technologies, Qualcomm, et Greenberg Traurig and dozens of other high-tech firms are attending this Thursday a meeting held by Morocco's BMCE, the prestigious Mohammedia engineers school (EMI) and Al-Akhawayn university, the only English-speaking pay university in Morocco.

The meeting seeks to establish contacts between enterprises of the famous Silicon Valley, California, with Moroccan experts, says EMI director-general Ramdane Khalid. Organizers also say the meeting, part of the Morocco-US free trade agreement concluded last June, means to give leaders of these multinational companies, themselves researchers, an opportunity to find out about Moroccan technology experts.

This is no delocalisation but an opportunity for invention and development of new products, he said stressing that Moroccan engineers who are famous for their solid education and competitive costs attract big multinational firms. He also hoped that these firms will open research laboratories in Morocco in order to contribute to the Kingdom's development and reduce brain drain.

American company "Atrenta" will concede to EMI and to Al Akhawayn university a very important and costly package software used to design electronic chips. The software, currently used by four American universities (MIT, Stanford, Caltech et Princeton) will be conceded for a ten-year period. This will not only help give high level training to engineers but also acquire state-of-the-art technology, rejoices EMI director.

EMI is already hosting a "ST Microelectronics" IC design and software development center which has hired 150 engineers and is planning to open a
research lab that will recruit 600 engineers in three years. "ST Microelectronics" will market mobile phones, cameras and TV sets working with Morocco-made chips. The enterprises from Silicon Valley are "General Photonics", "OEwaves, Inc", "Nanonexus", "Rfmagic", "Asip", "Atrenta", "GCS", "Neopad", "Nevis, Networks Inc" and "Sequoia ".
http://www.map.co.ma/mapeng/eng.htm 
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Morocco lifts ban on Importation of thorough-bred bovines
RABAT, Dec.03

Morocco has lifted the ban on imports of thorough-bred bovines used for reproduction, it was officially announced here. The ministry of agriculture, rural development and sea fisheries says the ban was enforced end of 2000 following the spread of the mad cow disease. In 2002, Morocco has some 2.7 million of bovines, including 13% of thorough-bred animals.
http://www.map.co.ma/mapeng/news/economy/h_deplocusts.htm 
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Need to reform local taxation system to attract foreign investments, King.
Economics, 12/2/2004

Morocco's King Mohammed VI has announced that reforms will be carried out to modernize the local taxation system that will help, among other things, to attract foreign investments in Morocco. This came in a message to participants in the international conference on investments that opened Wednesday in Skhirat (near Rabat) under the theme: "Territorial Commitment."

"(..) reforms will be carried out in order to modernize the local taxation system and ensure optimal distribution of tax receipts among local authorities" the monarch said adding that These measures and reforms, which are designed to encourage regional development, are prompted by strategic considerations meant to serve the public interest and respond to citizens' needs."

"Viewed from a partnership and free trade angle, they will inevitably help to enhance the attractiveness of Morocco as a country in which to invest," the monarch explained in his message read out on his behalf by his adviser Abdelaziz MZziane Belfkih.

He recalled that Morocco's 1996 Constitution set up the region as a local authority, to enable it to contribute effectively to development and strengthen the foundations of democracy. This constitutional reform, he went on, was followed by "the policy for decentralised management of investment, which I instituted in 2002 and which, among other things, made it possible to establish regional investment centres."

Our goal, the monarch said, is to enable all the regions of the Kingdom to make the most of their resources, and to ensure their optimal integration
into the nation's economy.

He called for the creation of a regional information system for investors and for the various parties involved in local development, and for an effective mobilization of local authorities' financial resources to give impetus to local, provincial and regional development. "To this end, reforms will be carried out in order to modernize the local taxation system and ensure optimal distribution of tax receipts among local authorities."

Viewed from a partnership and free trade angle, these measures and reforms will inevitably help enhance the attractiveness of Morocco as a country in which to invest, he concluded.
http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/041202/2004120222.html 
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Morocco inaugurates new phase in human rights development, Moroccan Red Crescent Organization
RABAT, Dec.03

Chairwoman of the Moroccan Red Crescent Organization (OCRM), HRH Princess Lalla Malika, said on Thursday Morocco has started a new phase in the promotion of human rights culture and enhancement of its principles. In a speech read on her behalf by OCRM vice president, Mehdi Bennouna, at the opening of the second regional conference on legislative aspects of national implementation of international humanitarian law, HRH Princess Lalla Malika said the human rights culture upheld by Morocco respects international conventions and encourages exchanges with institutions, associations and individuals so as to develop a constructive dialogue.

The main step that should be undertaken, she underlined, is to adapt national laws in force in the Arab world to international humanitarian law principles, and to establish coercive measures in case of failure to abide by its provisions, in order to guarantee the efficiency of the law and, hence, protect victims against all kinds of injustice. The four-day conference will raise several issues, most importantly "countries' commitment to ban international humanitarian law violations."
http://www.map.co.ma/mapeng/eng.htm 
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Democracy, economy, education, key elements for change, King.
Politics, 12/2/2004

King Mohammed VI of Morocco has insisted on democracy, economy and education as key elements for any "desired change" in the Arab states, in a message to participants in the third conference of the "Arab Thought Foundation" that opened in Marrakech Wednesday. The conference is held under the theme "Arabs between the Culture of Change and Changing the Culture."

He observed that the subject of the conference is all the more relevant, given the "extremely sensitive situation our Umma (Islamic nation) is facing
and which calls for Arab thought to be reconsidered." "The relationship you are establishing between change and culture shows how keenly aware you are of the inevitability of change, and of the key role culture plays in that change. Systems of government and development models which ignored this fact ended up being isolated or alienated." he warned.

"Democracy, the economy and education, which are key elements of current thought patterns, constitute the cornerstone of the desired change" the monarch said adding that "viewed from this perspective, the democracy we are trying to build is not so much a question of institutions and mechanisms; rather, it is about a culture based on freedom, rationality, responsible citizenship and compliance with the law."

In his message read out on his behalf by Prince Moulay Rachid, King Mohammed VI said that achieving strong sustainable development, for the purpose of overcoming social backwardness, hinges on upholding the values and principles which contribute to such development, like free enterprise, merit, transparency, productivity, competitiveness, sound management and social economy.

"For thought to contribute effectively to achieving democracy and development, it must help mobilize people, rekindle hope and enhance solidarity concerning social projects designed to liberate minds and release energies, in order to create wealth, stimulate cultural and artistic expression, and preserve our identity."

This, he said, is the objective we are seeking to achieve through the reform of the education and training system, in order to have citizens who are proud of their identity, open-minded and actively involved in the knowledge and communication-based society, which provides equal opportunities for all, and which tolerates no kind of illiteracy, whether alphabetical, intellectual or numerical.

"This is a vital matter which makes it incumbent on Arab thinkers to play their role fully as the embodiment of the Umma's conscience and the incarnation of its keen, albeit sometimes painful awareness," the monarch concluded.
http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/041202/2004120221.html 
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