EU supports Morocco’s health sector with €100 million

The European Union will extend Morocco €100 million (1.1 billion dirhams) to support the financing of the health sector in the context of the Covid-19 crisis

The related agreement was signed Tuesday by Economy & Finance Minister Mohamed Benchaâboun, Minister of Health Khalid Ait Taleb, and ambassador of the EU in Morocco, Claudia Wiedey,

The financial agreement includes a specific part concerning support for women and children, victim of violence.

The funds will support the financing of health activities as well as the Health Ministry’s ambitious medium term reform plan, the EU delegation said in a statement.

The agreement will also back Covid-19 post-crisis solutions, to help make the health sector more resilient to contingency future health crises, the statement said.

Mrs Wiedey, who praised the tremendous efforts made in recent weeks by all health workers, said this agreement is part of the EU’s emergency support to combat the Covid-19 pandemic.

“I am very delighted to see that this fight is starting to bear fruit, thanks to the involvement of everyone. Our partnership in the health sector, which dates back more than twenty years, will be up to the challenges,” added Mrs Wiedey.

The aim of this program is to support three key priorities of the Health Plan 2025, namely improving the quality and safety of care; supporting the human and financial management of the hospital system; and backing the implementation of the territorialization of health services, the statement noted.

A supplement will be earmarked for the establishment of technical assistance to strengthen the capacity of the national health system in the preparation, management and response to health crises.
The EU funds will also be used to purchase medical supplies, biomedical equipment, and medical devices needed in health crises.