King Mohammed VI Calls For institutionalization of Social Dialogue

King Mohammed VI has called for the institutionalization of social dialogue as a major gateway to achieving social justice and sustainable development.

In a message addressed to participants in the second International Parliamentary Forum on Social Justice, held in Rabat, the Moroccan Sovereign stressed the importance of regular consultation between economic and social stakeholders in order to achieve a genuine partnership between businesses and unions.

“I have urged successive governments to promote consultation between social parties and adopt suitable approaches for the establishment and organization of professional relations. I have also asked them to consolidate and develop social dialogue mechanisms and approaches”, added the royal message read out by speaker of the House of Advisors (Upper house), Hakim Benchamach.

However, “the efficiency of the social dialogue mechanisms may not be measured by their mere existence, nor by how regularly they work. They must have a tangible effect that produces good practices and helps promote social peace, economic growth and sustainable, inclusive development for all social categories, in order to reach the ultimate goal of achieving social justice”, stressed King Mohammed VI in his message.

Thus, he called for the institutionalization of social dialogue mechanisms, which have simple procedures and clear approaches and can include all parties. He stressed the need to enlarge the scope of social dialogue to include new issues such as effective equality, the fight against gender discrimination at the workplace and the fight against child labor.

In this vein, the Moroccan Sovereign called for building a new social dialogue system, taking into consideration the prerequisites for gender equality and the respect of human rights, along with the North African country’s commitments in accordance with the ILO’s conventions and with the requirements for sustainable development in its economic, social and environmental dimensions.

According to King Mohammed VI, the new social dialogue system should focus particularly on the Millennium Development Goals related to poverty, gender equality, continuous, inclusive sustainable economic development, full and productive employment and decent work for all.

“We should also take advantage of the ILO’s valuable contributions as far as social dialogue institutionalization is concerned and the United Nations’ guiding principles on business and human rights”, underlined the Monarch.

These ideas pave the way for a new sustainable development model, which is fair and comprehensive. “This model should achieve social justice and set the conditions for a decent life, which are fundamental for laying the foundations for a solidarity-based society, as described in the preamble to the Kingdom’s constitution”, said the Monarch in his message.