Thematic Working Group in Charge of Healthcare System Holds Meeting to Hear Several International Organizations Concerned with Health Sector

The thematic working group in charge of the healthcare system, chaired by Speaker of House of Representatives Habib El Malki, held, on Wednesday, October 28^th, 2020, at the House’s headquarters, a meeting to hear several international organizations active in the health sector.

In his address on this occasion, the Speaker of the House of Representatives affirmed the importance of the meeting's topic considering the current situation the world is undergoing due to the propagation of COVID-19, which made health "the number one priority." The House's Speaker also highlighted that Morocco has tried to overcome the imbalances and flaws that have arisen at the healthcare system level when facing the pandemic by making significant financial, material, and human efforts to prevent its collapse.

Besides, Mr. El Malki noted that His Majesty King Mohammed VI had directed the Government to generalize health coverage and social protection for all Moroccans within five years, which is “a grand Royal benevolence towards millions of Moroccans, including independent workers, informal sector workers, and vulnerable groups.”

The Speaker of the House of Representatives also highlighted that the House has seriously engaged in this major national project, noting, in particular, the creation of the "thematic working group in charge of the healthcare system," which has started its work following a precise scientific methodology and work plan. The latter consists of forming small taskforces that study and research topics related to universal health coverage and health funding, the medical and paramedical professions and scientific research, the infrastructure and health map, and governance. He also noted that the meeting to hear the international organizations concerned with health is part of the openness to the different health actors and widening the scope of consultation and information collection.

In their interventions, the representatives of the international organizations present in Morocco stressed the importance of generalizing health coverage, and the imperative of developing the healthcare system to face the challenges related to some diseases like tuberculosis, leishmaniasis, and diabetes, to follow up with the demographic and epidemiological developments in Morocco, to address the imbalances emanating from the acute shortage in human resources and medical staff, to improve service quality and the sector governance, and to effectively utilize information technology. These steps will "help create a healthcare policy that meets the aspirations of citizens and the different actors."

On their part, the thematic working group members lauded the insightful Royal vision in advancing the health sector. They also affirmed that political determination is an important asset and that the post-pandemic Morocco will witness a change in the efficiency and proficiency of health services by adopting several approaches that aim to provide adequate health coverage, as it is a social project that receives peculiar Royal attention.

The session was attended by WHO representative in Morocco Maryam Bigdeli, the UNICEF representative in Morocco Giovana Barberis, World Bank expert Jorge Coarasa, African Development Bank representative in Morocco Leila Mokaddem, and other experts and specialists.