Virtual Magazine of Morocco on the Web
Morocco Week in Review 
October 24, 2015

Empowering women: UD seniors sponsor women's running and leadership camp in Morocco
10 a.m., Oct. 21, 2015

As cross-country runners, two University of Delaware students knew that they must continue their physical training while studying abroad. Little did they know that running while in Morocco would open their eyes to the disparities concerning women’s involvement in both exercise and the public sphere. UD seniors Elizabeth Clinton and Nora Reynolds shared many similarities. Members of the University Honors Program, both were international relations majors who studied Arabic, loved running, and held an interest in women’s rights. Both, too, had studied abroad in Morocco.

Clinton, who studied in Asilah this past winter as part of a UD foreign language study abroad program sponsored by the Institute for Global Studies (IGS), and Reynolds who studied in Ifrane, also shared common observations from exercising during their time abroad. “We both fell in love with Morocco and its people, and had similar experiences while running and exercising there,” said Clinton. “We did not see many runners, and we especially did not see any women running. Also, the gyms in Morocco are set up differently; men and women work out on different days.”

Interested in the role that exercise norms may play in other domains, they began to explore the relationship between increased participation by women in sports and their participation in other public areas, like politics and education. As they began to conduct research for a future thesis, they also realized the powerful impact that they could have with direct action.

Rooted in a combined passion for running and international development, Clinton and Reynolds decided to establish a women’s running and leadership camp in Morocco. This August, they traveled to Ouarzazate to conduct pre-assessment research about what Moroccan women would find most valuable in a running camp. “We want to teach basic training skills including stretching, nutrition, overall health and wellness, and smart running,” shared Clinton. “We also believe running to be empowering, so we want to incorporate lectures on leadership and initiative.”

While in Morocco, Clinton and Reynolds met with volunteers of CorpsAfrica, a U.S. Peace Corps affiliate. CorpsAfrica works to provide Moroccans with opportunities to volunteer in their own country. As international relations students, they both understand the value of working with local people so that they do not portray themselves as outsiders imposing on a community. They hope that this approach will allow them to be more engaged in the community and have a genuine effect on the lives of Moroccan women.

Clinton and Reynolds will return to Morocco in January 2016 to implement their running and leadership camp. They received funding from the James R. Soles Undergraduate Citizenship Stipend through UD’s Department of Political Science and International Relations to support their trip in August and part of their camp in January. The two seniors are now seeking funding to cover costs associated with their two-week program during January. They have created a crowdfunding site titled, Tessria - An Initiative to Empower Moroccan Women Through Running, where donations will go toward running sneakers, exercise clothes, and food for participants during the camp. Tessria, an Arabic word which means “to accelerate,” represents their hope for forward motion in both running and development.

Students with an interest in studying abroad are encouraged to consult the IGS website for program application dates, interest meetings and more.

About the Institute for Global Studies: The Institute for Global Studies was created in 2009 to enhance the international dimensions of teaching, research and outreach at the University of Delaware. IGS provides leadership and support for programs and experiences that contribute to the education of informed, skilled, open-minded citizens of the world. IGS awards scholarships and grants to faculty and students for a number of global opportunities, and administers internationally-recognized programs such as the UD Fulbright Initiative, Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) Student Leaders Institute, Mandela Washington Fellowship Program for Young African Leaders, and most recently the Study of the United States Institutes for Student Leaders (SUSI-WL) program.
IGS sponsors such signature events as Global Month each fall and country-specific celebrations each spring. IGS collaborates with other global partners on campus, including the Office for International Students and Scholars, the Confucius Institute and the Center for Global and Area Studies. In addition, IGS partners with Enrollment Management to coordinate the UD World Scholars Program.
Article by Jessica Franzetti
Video by Kristina Magana watch it here:http://www.udel.edu/udaily/2016/oct/morocco-running-camp-102115.html
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ICRAM Questions Figures Hinting at Decrease of Amazigh-Speakers in Morocco
Sunday 18 October 2015 By Yasyn Mouhir Rabat

Ahmed Boukous, the President of the Royal Institute of Amazigh Culture (ICRAM) is questioning the methodology of the latest figures of the Moroccan census conducted by the High Commission Planning. The HCP said that that the proportion of Moroccans who speak Amazigh decreases with each new census.
Ahmed El Hlimi Al Alami, chairman of Morocco’s High Commission for Planning (HPC), announced that 89.8 percent of Moroccans speak Darija, including 96 percent of those who live in cities and 80.2 percent of those who live in countryside.

The results revealed that 26.7 percent of the population speaks Amazigh, 14 percent of whom speak Tachlhit, 7.6 percent Tamazigh, and 4.1percent Tarifit.
According to the HCP, the rate of Moroccans who speak the Amazigh language declined from 28 percent in 2004 to 26.7 percent in 2014. Ahmed Boukous said one has to take the methodology and the resulting figures with great caution. He believes that at this rate, in a few years, the HCP will announce that “Amazighophones” will represent only a tiny percentage of the population. He recalled that in 1960, during the first census of independent Morocco, sociological studies in cities and rural villages estimated the proportion of Amazigh-speakers at 50 percent of the Moroccan population.

Interviewed by Media 24, Lahlimi Ahmed, president of the HCP, said that despite the protests, the registration process “cannot be questioned.” “Our 75,000 agents didn’t do an ethnic census, and the figures are based on respondents’ statements. I understand that some are concerned about the decline in the rate of “Amazighophones”, but they must make demands to remedy the situation rather than questioning the statistics,” said Lahlimi. According to him, the cause of this decline is simple: urbanization and the preference for functional languages has resulted in fewer speakers of the Amazigh language.
Edited by Timothy Filla
http://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2015/10/170696/icram-questions-figures-hinting-at-decrease-of-amazigh-speakers-in-morocco/
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18.3 % of Moroccans Speak English
Sunday 18 October 2015 - Aziz Allilou Rabat

English is the second most spoken foreign language in Morocco, according to the most recent data disclosed by High Commission for Planning. The result of the Sixth General Census of Population and Housing (RGPH 2014), which took place from 1 to 20 September 2014, found that English remains less popular than French in Morocco.

According to the same source, 66 percent of Moroccans can read and write in French, compared to only 18.3 percent who can read and write in English. The results found that 89.8 % of Moroccans speak Darija (the Moroccan dialect), 96% of whom live in cities and 80.2 % in the countryside. The results also revealed that Amazigh-speaking persons represent 26,7% of the population, 14% of whom speak Tachlhit, 7,6% Tamazight and 4,1% Tarifit.|

Morocco witnessed a heated debate in recent years over the adoption of English as the country’s first foreign language, rather than French, with several minister and politicians calling for replacing French with English as the primary language of higher education. In March 2014, Moroccan Minister of Higher Education Lahcen Daoudi, announced plans to make the switch from French to English. Abdelilah Benkirane, the Head of Government, also stated earlier this year that Morocco must choose English as its primary language of education “because it is the language of today’s science, technology, and commerce.”

However, the necessary steps have not yet been taken and the primary language today in higher institutions remains French. In June, Morocco’s think tank, the Rabat Center for Political and Strategic Studies submitted a report to the Supreme Council for Education, Training and Scientific Research, demanding the adoption of English as Morocco’s first foreign language instead of French. Meanwhile, the Supreme Council’s administration did not take the necessary steps, and is currently still moving to keep French as a second official language.
http://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2015/10/170704/18-3-of-moroccans-speak-english/
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Calling All Young Moroccan Entrepreneurs
Monday 19 October 2015 - morocco world news Rabat

The African Leadership Academy is currently touring North Africa. The tour started in earnest in Morocco last Weekend on Saturday, October 10th in the IRC section at the newly built United States Embassy in Rabat. The IRC was packed to capacity with young entrepreneurs eager to become agents of transformative change in Morocco. In attendance were youth representing Enactus, Injaz and former Alumni of the YES program. They had the opportunity to learn about the MasterCard Sponsored Anzisha Prize.

“I hope that this year marks the first time that a Moroccan Entrepreneur will be a finalist for this prestigious prize. Morocco is in need of Entrepreneurs who employ others. Youth can no longer expect to have the government come and provide them with Jobs upon graduating from school. Young Moroccans need to be proactive and learn how to be Entrepreneurial in approaching their dreams. First, they must identify a problem, lots to choose from, then they come up with a solution; then they empower others from within their social network to help them affect global solutions that fulfil a vision that they are passionate about.” Says Elmahdi Oummih, Strategic Relations Director in North Africa for the African Leadership Academy.

The Anzisha Prize was first launched in 2011, and the 2014 finalists will join a community of Anzisha fellows from previous years. This is a life-long membership where the fellows will have access to Anzisha’s network of mentors, advisers and investors that extend across the continent. The Anzisha Prize seeks to award young entrepreneurs who have developed and implemented innovative solutions to social challenges or started successful businesses within their communities. 12 finalists from across Africa will win an all-expenses paid trip to South Africa to be a part of a week-long entrepreneurship workshop and conference at the African Leadership Academy campus on the outskirts of Johannesburg. The grand prize winners, selected from these finalists, will share prizes worth $75,000 USD

This is the time for Moroccans to start their projects so that by the time the application process opens up, they are able to apply for this once in a life time opportunity. Applications can be downloaded from www.anzishaprize.org

As part of the North African Tour, Mr. Oummih is also talking to youth about opportunities available to them through the Global Scholars program, www.alasummer.org and the Flag Ship 2 year program which has seen youth from all over Morocco go on to receive scholarships at some of the most prestigious Universities in the world. Those interested in applying to African Leadership Academy must commit to coming back to their countries (or another African country) and working for at least ten years on the continent. This fulfils one of the goals of African Leadership Academy, which is to reverse the brain drain that has wrecked such Havoc to the development of Africa. The application process is now open for the 2 year program, and all youth between the ages of 15 and 19 are encouraged to apply. Applications are available in Arabic, French or English and can be downloaded at www.africanleadershipacademy.org

The North Africa Tour will continue in Tunisia over the next two weeks, with appearances slated for Tunisian National Radio and Television as well as numerous visits to the top schools and Entrepreneurial Organizations throughout Tunisia before returning to Morocco briefly for the eagerly anticipated Early Admissions Finalist event to be held at Hotel Sofitel in Casablanca on November 1st. The Tour will then make stops in Algeria, Libya, Sudan, Egypt and Ethiopia before coming back to Morocco again. “This is truly a once in a lifetime opportunity, if you know any youth between the ages of 15 and 19, please encourage them to download an application from the website today!” Said, Mr. Oummih.
http://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2015/10/170748/calling-all-young-moroccan-entrepreneurs/
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Morocco’s CNDH Calls for Equality Between Women and Men in Inheritance.
Tuesday 20 October 2015 - Aziz Allilou Rabat

Morocco’s National Human Rights Council (CNDH) has urged the government to rewrite its family code, and to establish equality between men and women concerning inheritance. In 2004, Morocco adopted a family code, which was hailed by women’s rights groups as a big step forward. Seven years later, in 2011 the country passed a new constitution that guarantees gender equality.

Even so, Morocco’s National Human Rights Council says in a new report that equality is still a long way off, and much of the old order remains untouched, including the inheritance law section of the family code. The law, which is laid down in the Quran, states that male relatives receive double the inheritance of women in most cases.

In accordance with precepts of Islam, a son inherits twice as much as a daughter and a brother inherits twice the share of his sister. However, in cases of uterine brothers and sisters, their shares are equal. Entitled “Preserve the Constitutional Aims and Objectives and Make them Effective,” the report, which was released on Tuesday, stresses that women should receive the same inheritance as men, in accordance with the 2011 constitution whose article 19 clearly calls for the implementation of gender equality.

The report also urged the government to reform the foreign nationality legal framework, to grant women the same rights as men and allow them to pass their nationality to their foreign husbands. The CNDH called for immediate implementation of gender mainstreaming authority embedded in the constitution, which has not been instituted, including the promulgation of the law that eradicates gender violence in order to protect women’s human rights.
Article 19 of the constitution states: “Men and women have equal civil, political, economic, social, cultural and environmental rights and freedoms as listed in this article and in the rest of the constitution as well as the conventions and international treaties duly ratified by Morocco in conformity with the constitution’s provisions and the kingdom’s constants and its laws. The state shall work towards the establishment of parity between men and women. Therefore, it has assigned a specialized authority to ensure parity between men and women and fight against all forms of discrimination.”

Last year, Driss Lachgar, secretary general of the Socialist Union of Popular Forces, an opposition party, called for repealing laws that discriminate against women and for a national debate on the inheritance law.
http://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2015/10/170856/moroccos-cndh-calls-for-equality-between-women-and-men-in-inheritance/
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Pulling carts piled high with plastic bottles or rummaging through unofficial dumpsites, informal trash collectors abound on the streets of Morocco.
Dubbed Mikhala in the local Arabic dialect, the thousands of rubbish pickers are often looked down on as they trudge though the capital Rabat and other Moroccan cities. But a project to hire the Mikhala to work officially is starting to change that image, and even help as Morocco looks to reach an ambitious goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 13% by 2020. In their own modest way, the waste pickers could be a model for countries where, like in Morocco, consumers often do not sort through and recycle their own rubbish.

As the host of next year’s UN climate conference – following the COP21 meeting in Paris on Nov 30 to Dec 11 that aims to conclude a universal climate-rescue pact – Morocco will be under scrutiny for its own efforts to reduce emissions and tackling household waste – which the environment ministry says causes up to 18% of greenhouse gas emissions in Morocco – will be key.

Unlike in many Western countries where recycling is long established, in Morocco there is little legal framework for waste sorting. Morocco only recycles about 8% of its municipal waste, but has targeted to increase the amount to 20% by 2020, according to a report presented at the European Union last year.
“Informal waste processing is generally done by poor social groups with a low level of education as a daily means of survival,” says Mustapha Azaaitraoui, a researcher specialised in environmental issues.

Set up in 2011 with support from the World Bank, the Attawafoq cooperative at the Oum Azza industrial landfill south of Rabat is a first attempt at changing that. It employs about 150 people – mainly ex-pickers – to sort trash for recycling on-site instead of on the streets.

‘Respect’ for pickers
Among them is Yassin Mazout, 31, a history graduate who heads the cooperative after becoming a trash picker to pay for his studies when his father died.
“We are all equal, we all have the same monthly salary of 2,500 dirhams (about RM1,120),” he says. “Before, at the old dumpsite, the strong would crush the weak.” After working outside for years, Mazout and his colleagues now work under a roof manually sorting through half of the average 2,000 tonnes of solid waste that arrive each day at the landfill.

“We’re much better off,” agrees Najat, who before joining Attawafoq spent 18 of her 51 years as an informal trash picker. “We have social security and our earnings help us support our families.”

This year for the first time the cooperative made a profit that will be divided up between members and used to increase its capital. Mazout wants trash pickers to finally receive the “respect” they deserve as “they play an important role in our lives – both environmentally and economically”. “The workers are very well organised,” says Gerard Prenant, director of the Pizzorno Environnement group that operates and has invested 650,000 euros in the landfill. “They’re very professional in sorting and we’re delighted to have them working at our site,” he says.

At the landfill outside the capital, Attawafoq’s workers are giving back value to waste. The cooperative provides an important environmental service at zero cost to the community, Mazout says. Recycling not only reduces waste in landfills, but also helps to lower greenhouse gas emissions by saving energy from producing or importing products like cardboard and plastic. Mazout says he hopes the project will inspire others around a country that still counts 220 unauthorised dumpsites. Morocco aims to close all these informal dumping grounds by 2020, Environment Ministry official Lubna al-Abed says, and has already funded 16 waste sorting centres like Attawafoq in partnership with municipalities.
http://www.therakyatpost.com/world/2015/10/21/morocco-trash-pickers-help-fight-climate-change/
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Morocco: U.S. Companies See Opportunities in Morocco's Agricultural Sector.
BlogBy Jean R. Abinader

One can't help but be skeptical when hearing about another business conference extolling the promise of opportunities abroad. It is not uncommon to ask "So what?" when looking for results that justify the expense of attending events while coming away with glossy brochures, a fistful of business cards, and tenuous promises of quick responses.

So we did something different at the US-Morocco Trade & Investment Forum in Atlanta on October 13. Most of the time was allocated for companies to talk with presenters, other companies, and government officials, with an emphasis on building face-to-face relationships so essential to doing business.
Well, how did that turn out? I can only give you my perspective and reflect on emails I received following the Forum, but I think they made the right decision - put people with mutual interests in a room and let them talk business.

It worked out fine. I moderated a panel on agriculture, agri-business, and water management. Not unimportant to a country like Morocco where upwards of 40% of the workforce is in the farming sector and, in a good year, the sector contributes more than 18% to the country's GDP.

In the room were representatives of Coca-Cola bottlers and distributors in Morocco, whose business affects some 70,000 Moroccan employees and their families.
Given that Coca-Cola sources as much as it can locally, they are major players in the sector and in the economy. More importantly, Coke provides a great deal of technical assistance to local businesses to grow supply chain products and services, building the next generation of entrepreneurs.

From the Moroccan government, we heard from three very competent representatives: Mrs. Asma El Kasmi from the National Office of Electricity and Potable Water (ONEE), Abdeslam Ziyad, who directs strategic planning at the Ministry of Agriculture, and Soufiane Larguet, Director for Strategies and Statistics at the Ministry. All presented current data and projected opportunities in their areas of specialty.

The US and Moroccan private sectors included private equity investment firms, a foundation and company specializing in agriculture and water projects in Africa, a leading producer of organic and specialty food and cosmetic oils, several agro-industry firms, and a working farm that provides overseas technical assistance in a broad range of areas including improving seed, water management technologies, and food security processes.

One of the highlights of the session was the opening remarks by Gary Black, Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Agriculture.
His presentation on the industry in Georgia and his insights into potential bilateral links has already led to discussions with Moroccan Ambassador Rachad Bouhlal on an exchange program between food security experts in Morocco and Georgia.

Commissioner Black's rational is that a thorough understanding of the food security (read FDA and USDA in the US) guidelines in the marketplace facilitates trade. This was borne out by several participants who spoke about the difficulty of navigating food and argan and olive oil exports to the US, despite the US-Morocco Free Trade Agreement.

A positive follow up is that several of the US participants in the room have already begun to the in touch with counterparts in the government and private sector in Morocco. And Moroccan companies are clearly interested in pursuing relationships that ease the process of exporting into the US.
It is a beginning of an important exchange of ideas, proposals, and discussions about concrete business and investment opportunities that will continue for some time.
Moroccan American Center for Policy (Washington, DC)
http://allafrica.com/stories/201510221619.html
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Women’s Movement Strategies of Activism in Morocco
Saturday 24 October 2015 - Mohammed Yachoulti Meknes

Throughout their history of activism, Moroccan women’s movement organizations have made use of multi-faceted strategies to enhance their visibility in the public sphere, attain more support, keep their cause in the public eye and propagate their beliefs and ideology. These strategies include education, research and publication and political advocacy

Indeed, the first and foremost common strategy to combat women’s inequities and reach the masses with their ideology is education. In fact, the goals of educational programmes women’s organizations engage in are multidimensional. First, educational programmes are meant to combat illiteracy that is widely spread among Moroccan women. Similarly, they are meant to teach them skills that facilitate engage in income-generating activities. Most importantly, educational programmes are meant to indoctrinate women with their ideology under the umbrella of ‘rights and duties’. In their article “Women as Agents of Grassroots Change: Illustrating Micro-Empowerment in Morocco (Academic /Other)”Walliam Stephanie and Susan Shafer Davis (2011) argue that women’s organizations human and legal education programmes are comprehensive, participatory and collective. “They cover a variety of rights-based topics and encourage active discussion and participation with groups of women” (P.100). In other words, as Noufissa Ibn revealed in her interview, “we teach them how to handle simple legal cases as well as introducing them to some of the debates that are taking place regarding women’s legal rights”[1].

Similar to the strategy of conscious-raising programmes, a number of women’s movement organizations have started since the late 1990s providing space within their quarters to implement their strategies of sensitising all categories of society of their cause and the different gender issues. In 1997 ADFM (Association Démocratique des Femmes du Maroc) had the chance to join the Ministry education project of rewriting the secondary school text-book through a gender lens. Since then, it has engaged in many training-programmes for young activists working in NGOs that target mainly rural girls’ education in addition to occasional workshops on gender issues and human rights.

Another women’s organization that followed the same path is LDDF (La Ligue Démocratique pour les Droits de la Femme). This association managed to design its own literacy book for women. This is meant to teach women through specific pictures and activities their rights and the importance of their contribution to their society. LDDF has also opened a library for school children to help them in their homework, research activities and engage them in focus-groups on gender issues, citizenship and human rights. All this fall within the objective of reaching and getting the maximum of adherents and supporters to their cause as well as working out women’s position in their modern society

The second strategy of women’s movement to propagate its ideology is research and publication. Publication includes journalism and academic writings namely sociological and literature (Sadiqi, Fatima, Dec, 2008). Journalistic writings include, in their turn, newspapers and magazines. They are widely spread among the educated population. Sadiqi contends that “Journalistic discourse, couched in Arabic and French, evolved around two major issues: (i) a cult of domesticity and (ii) feminist ideology”[2] (Sadiqi, Fatima, Dec, 2008, p. 327). . The cult of domesticity includes topics that are meant to improve women’s health, productivity, education, nurturing skills, household management, childbearing, and ‘how to’ be a better, more effective wife or mother.

As for feminist ideology, it includes selected biographies of national and international figures. Indeed, using some sort of feminist hagiography, biographies are used as a means to of publicly exposing feminist ideas without directly implicating the writer. Both types of journalistic writings aim at stressing the development of women through the development of their gifts, while highlighting their domestic roles (Sadiqi, Fatima, Dec, 2008). As for the academic writings, they have been pioneered mainly by Leila Abouzied and Fatima Mernissi. These latter have tried through literature and sociological research to “show how gender differences were created by humans and constructed within specific socio-cultural contexts”. Also “by questioning the sexual division and ideology on which it is based, the discourse of academic liberal feminists has questioned patriarchy and has emphasized the fact that gender roles are , sexuality and even the division of labour are neither divinely prescribed nor ordained; by nature but have historical origins” (Sadiqi, Fatima, Dec, 2008, p. 24).

On the other hand, there are many research centers and study groups that are found namely at the university level. These latter publish regularly as they find in research, writing and publication an effective instrument of collective struggle. The members of these groups are usually university professors and PhD holders. Also, in addition to conducting research and publishing articles and books, they organize conferences, workshops and seminars. Further, these centers and groups open a space for more interaction between university and academic institutions to exchange information and expertise to keep women’s cause in the public eye.

Another important strategy women’s movement makes use of is lobbying and political advocacy. So to speak, in order to promote women’s rights, women’s movement organizations resort to pressure the government to launch reforms and instigate political parties to take their cause seriously through putting it at the top of their agenda and programmes. In this regard, as will be shown in the coming chapter, the largest efforts of women’s organizations to mention is the ‘One Million Signature Campaign’ in 1992 via which they sought to gain more support to change Moroccan personal Status Code. Political advocacy includes also women’s involvement in political parties and their struggles to take positions in their boards and committees for the sake of influencing programmes and decision-makings.

Last but not least, women’s activism has produced a number of experienced women able to expose and defend women’s cause nationally and internationally through participating in international seminars, meetings and conferences. These women are Latifa Jbabdi, Zhor Lhor, Nezha Gussous and AminaLamrini among many others.

In conclusion, women’s movement organizations techniques and strategies of activism target the promotion of women’s rights through negotiations, provisions and creation of spaces for self-defense.
References
– Walliam, Stephanie. & Susan, Shafer. Davis. (Winter 2011). “Women as Agents of Grassroots Change: Illustrating Micro-Empowerment in Morocco (Academic / Other)”Journal of Middle East Women’s Studies, 7, (1), 90-119.
– Sadiqi, Fatima. (December 2008). “The Central Role of the Family Law in the Moroccan Feminist Movement”.British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies, 35, (3), 325-337.
[1]-An interview with NoufissaIbn, a founding member and feminist activist in ADFM section in Casablanca. (My own translation).
[2]-Sadiqi, Fatima (December 2008). Op, cit.
http://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2015/10/171045/womens-movement-strategies-of-activism-in-morocco/
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Recipe: Moroccan Herb Jam
Originally published October 19, 2015
By Seattle Times staff The Seattle Times

The flavor of herb jam is deep and haunting, sparked with cumin and hot pepper, drizzled with olive oil and lemon juice. Spread it on toasted pita bread, with this warning: It is highly addictive.

MOROCCAN HERB JAM

Makes about 4 cups
1½ pounds various greens and herbs (like chard, kale, broccoli raab, dill, marjoram, parsley, cilantro, celery tops and scallions and outer leaves of lettuce or similar greens)
6 large cloves garlic, unpeeled
Extra-virgin olive oil
2 small hot red chilies (dried) or a pinch of crushed red pepper
Salt
1½ tablespoons cumin seeds, toasted in a dry pan until fragrant, then ground
¼ cup roughly chopped pitted black olives, such as Kalamata or oil-cured
Pinch of pimentón (Spanish smoked paprika)
Lemon, for final seasoning
Pita or flatbread, for serving

1. Put the greens and herbs and garlic cloves all together in a large steamer set over medium-high heat, and steam until tender, 15 to 20 minutes. (If you don’t have a steamer, use a large, deep skillet with a lid. Put 2 inches of water in bottom of pan, add greens, cover and cook at a brisk simmer.)
2. Set the garlic aside. Drain greens, let cool and squeeze out moisture; pick out the tougher herb stems if necessary. Put greens and herbs on a cutting board and chop very finely with a large knife.
3. Put 4 tablespoons olive oil in a wide skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chilies and let them sizzle without browning (or use a pinch of crushed red pepper), then add the chopped greens, a pinch of salt and half the cumin seeds. The flavor is concentrated by cooking most of the moisture out of the greens; this will take about 10 to 15 minutes. (Stir the herb jam mixture often as the water evaporates; it will want to stick.)
4. Turn the heat off but leave the mixture in the pan. Peel the steamed garlic and mash it into the pan along with the olives. Mix everything and taste; add salt as needed, a good splash of olive oil, the pimentón and more cumin to taste. The herb jam should be highly seasoned. Add more chili if it isn’t spicy enough. Just before serving, add a squeeze of lemon. Spread on toasted pita or flatbread if desired. The herb jam can be stored in the refrigerator, tightly covered, for about five days.
— David Tanis, The New York Times
http://www.seattletimes.com/life/food-drink/recipe-moroccan-herb-jam/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_food-drink
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One Moroccan in three is illiterate, report says
UN, one in 10 lives with less than 2 dollars a day

16 October, (ANSAmed) - RABAT, OCTOBER 16

The sixth general census in Morocco has revealed that eight and a half million people are illiterate. Almost 32% of the population above 10 years of age are unable to read and write, according to a report drafted by HCP, the high commissioner for the project of statistical studies on the population. The study also noted that illiteracy has gone down only 18.7% in 10 years.

The government's plan is to eradicate the problem by 2024 but NGOs and experts are more cautious.

The number of participants in ministerial programs promoting literacy are growing with almost 750,000 reportedly deciding to learn how to read and write between 2014 and 2015. In addition, 250,000 people have attended courses held at mosques. And NGOs have also registered a 56% increase of students in classes to learn language basics (453,337 in 2015 against 290,398 the previous year). Associations and state programs mean to double the number of those aged between 16 and 24, targeting young illiterates in particular.

But the great number of those who don't know how to read and write is constantly fueled by the young who drop out of school and the education system is unable to do anything to help them.

Illiteracy is higher in rural rather than urban areas. In 2014, almost half of the rural population (47.7%) was illiterate against 22.2% in cities. The gender gap is also high: over 60% of women living in the country is illiterate against 35.2% of men; in the urban context, the ratio is 30.5% to 13%.

One Moroccan in 10 lives with less than 19 dirhams a day, according to the 2015 United Nations report on food and farming: 3.6 million people are living in Morocco with less than two dollars a day.

And 4.5% of children, especially in rural areas, are malnourished. Moreover, only 36.8% of Moroccans benefit from social services. The UN concluded its report calling for national policies promoting aid and support ''to progressively free people from poverty and hunger''. (ANSAmed)
http://www.ansamed.info/ansamed/en/news/nations/morocco/2015/10/16/one-moroccan-in-three-is-illiterate-report-says_b4928a85-0e3c-4c4a-96db-1aec46ae1638.html
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