Princely Activities
Monday 9 March 2020

HRH Princess Lalla Meryem Presides in Marrakesh over Celebration Ceremony of International Women's Day

HRH Princess Lalla Meryem Presides in Marrakesh over Celebration Ceremony of International Women's Day

HRH Princess Lalla Meryem, Chairwoman of the National Union of Women of Morocco (UNFM), chaired, on Sunday at the Bahia Palace in Marrakesh, the celebration ceremony of the International Women's Day.

After verses of the Holy Quran were recited and the national anthem was played, HRH Princess Lalla Meryem followed, on this occasion, a video presentation on violence against women.

Her Royal Highness Princess Lalla Meryem also followed a presentation on the Marrakesh Declaration 2020, made by the president of the UNFM ethics committee and coordinator for the preparation and monitoring of agreements Amina Oufroukhi.

Then, an agreement relating to the Marrakesh Declaration was signed by Minister of National Education, Vocational Training, Higher Education and Scientific Research Said Amzazi, Minister of Health Khalid Ait Taleb, Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports, government spokesperson, El Hassan Abyaba and Minister of Solidarity, Social Development, Equality and Family Jamila El Moussali.

This document was also signed by Minister Delegate for higher education and scientific research Driss Ouaouicha, President of the Public Prosecutor's Office Mohamed Abdennabaoui and President of the High Authority for Audiovisual Communication (HACA) Latifa Akharbach.

The signing of the Marrakesh Declaration, including a set of commitments by the departments concerned with the issue of violence against women, testifies to the willingness of the public authorities to get more involved in this fight jointly with the UNFM. The parties concerned plan to set up a Council to monitor the implementation of the said Declaration.

This Council will act through concrete actions on the mechanisms of care for victims, the fight against stereotypes about women in public media outlets, as well as on the promotion of the culture of non-violence through basic education and higher education, and will present the results of its action on March 8, 2021.

Subsequently, Abdennabaoui thanked HRH Princess Lalla Meryem on behalf of the partners of the platform for combating violence against women, "Kolona Maak".

This listening, support and guidance platform, launched by the UNFM in partnership with the Public Prosecutor's Office and other institutions, for the benefit of women and young girls in vulnerable situations will help collect their complaints and grievances and send them to the support services, in this case, the Public Prosecutor's Office, the Royal Gendarmerie, the Police and the UNFM Reception Centers.

Available 24/7 via a direct telephone line, this platform receives requests for support and guidance in employment, training, vocational training, business creation and income-generating projects locally and regionally.

This action is also accompanied by a mobile application aimed at offering assistance for emergencies using geolocation. To date, this platform has made it possible to prevent tragic situations linked to the various forms of violence against women.

On the same occasion, a video of the testimonies by the beneficiaries from the services provided by the UNFM was screened.

This ceremony was also marked by the presentation of the Lalla Meryem Prize for Innovation and Excellence, by Redouane Nejmeddine, President of the Barid Bank Board, under the leadership of Malika Chawki, Advisor to the UNFM, Director delegated to ESSEC.

The Lalla Meryem Prize for Innovation and Excellence, launched by the UNFM, aims to reward the best initiatives of young girls aged 20 to 40 from rural and peri-urban areas from the 12 regions of Morocco.

These young people will be selected and trained in order to equip them with techniques to build their Soft Skills and support them in carrying out their projects.

Afterwards, a video on the celebration of International Women's Day made by UNFM regional associations (Oujda, Tangier, Rabat, Salé and Laâyoune) was screened.

This ceremony was also marked by the presentation of the Lalla Meryem Scholarships for middle school girls (13-18 years old) and high school girls (17-25 years old) by Driss Ouaouicha.

Upon her arrival at the Bahia Palace, HRH Princess Lalla Meryem reviewed a detachment of the Auxiliary Forces which paid the honors and was greeted mainly by Minister of National Education, Vocational Training, Higher Education and Scientific Research Saaid Amzazi, Minister of Solidarity, Social Development, Equality and Family Jamila El Moussali and President of the Public Prosecutor's Office Mohamed Abdennabaoui.

MAP 08 March 2020