First Independent Mena Newspaper
The long awaited launch of the flexible exchange rate system for the Dirham currency will start on January 15 after it was postponed for 5 months. The gradual Dirham float will start with an anchor of 2.5% in-stead of 0.3% currently, while fixing the Dirham exchange rate via a peg that is 60 percent weighted […]
The Political Bureau of the Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM) has dispelled speculations about its intention to submit a draft bill to forfeit nationality from Jews of Moroccan origin living in Israeli settlements. The Party’s Spokesperson confirmed that the legal measure against the Moroccan Jews in Israeli settlements was not on the agenda. And during […]
Reporters without Borders (RSF) accused Tunisian authorities of harassing journalists covering the anti-austerity protests that have been simmering across Tunisia. In a statement, RSF condemned the Tunisian police for brief detention and interrogation of one reporter and the confisca-tion of another’s phone. Mathieu Galtier, a French reporter for the Paris-based daily Libération, received an unexpected […]
Morocco chose a successful businessman and current industry minister to lead its charm offensive to host the 2026 World Soccer Cup, in a fifth attempt by the kingdom to organize the global sports event. Moulay Hafid Elalamy will act as the governmental interlocutor for FIFA and will be tasked with coordinating the campaign to host […]
UN Under-Secretary for Political Affairs has underlined the world body’s commitment to democratic elections in Libya, after field Marshal Khalifa Haftar declared that the oil-rich country is not ready for democracy and that he would overrun the country should reconciliation and proposed elections fail to go rightly. Jeffrey Feltman was in Tripoli Thursday where he […]
Egypt, home of the Middle East’s largest Christian community, has been the theatre of multiple acts of aggression on Churches putting the lives of many Christians at risk, said Open Doors Charity in a recent report. According to Open Doors, 128 Christians were killed in Egypt for their faith and more than 200 were driven […]
The European Bank for Reconstruction & Development has approved a €9.7 Million loan to Fondation Albaraka, one of the largest microfinance institutions in Morocco for on-lending to local micro enterprises. Access to finance through banks remains extremely limited for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in Morocco. The EBRD funds will offer much-needed support for […]
Laureate Education, a Baltimore-based company, said it will sell its university in Morocco, Université Internationale de Casablanca, for $53.6 mln to KMR Holding Pédagogique, a company that owns the Private University of Marrakech and invests in education in west Africa. The Université Internationale de Casablanca, which opened in 2010, is one of the few state-recognized […]
Morocco forsees growth to slow to 2.8% in 2018, down from 4% in 2017 as rainfall uncertainties haunt the agricultural output. The figures released by Morocco’s statistics office (HCP) show that Morocco’s growth remains vulnerable to the performances of the agricultural sector. According to the same agency, non-agricultural activities would increase slightly from 2.8% in […]
The European Commission seems set to renew the fisheries agreement with Morocco, which will expire in July 2018. The Commission has asked the European Council for a mandate to start negotiations with Morocco on the deal, which enabled, since 2013, 120 vessels from 11 EU countries to fish off Moroccan coasts. In 2017, both EU […]