First Independent Mena Newspaper
A new presidential decree coming into effect this February 1 will increase import duties on luxury goods from 10% to 40% as the government tries to boost its foreign reserves and ensure that they are spent on essential products while hoping to contribute to an increase in demand of local products. Ahmed Shiha, head of […]
Morocco took a number of measures worth over $5 million to help farmers and mitigate the impact of the current drought on the rural world. The measures were announced on the morrow of the meeting King Mohammed VI convened on Thursday with the Head of Government Abdelilah Benkirane and Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries Aziz […]
US President Barack Obama Thursday expressed his determination to tackle IS in Libya following Pentagon’s announcement of possible military action against the terrorist group in former Libyan ruler Gaddafi’s country. President Obama convened his National Security Council to discuss with his security aids the Libyan issue which is taking a serious turn following recent gains […]
Egyptian authorities charged on Thursday a 16-year old boy for plotting to overthrow the government. Omar al-Brashi, a first year high school student was arrested while he was sitting for an exam at his high school in the northern port city of Damietta. He has been charged with international espionage, affiliation to a prohibited group […]
Tunisia has ranked first democracy in the Arab world and 57th worldwide, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit’s 2015 Democracy Index report. The North African country tormented by social riots due to chronic economic difficulties has fared well in term of democracy among other Arab countries, according to Economist Intelligence Unit; a search and analysis […]
US President Barack Obama praised Wednesday the initiatives made worldwide to enhance the protection of religious minorities, giving as an instance the conference on religious minorities’ rights in Muslim countries that just concluded its proceedings in Marrakech the same day. In remarks he made at Righteous among Nations Award Ceremony held in Washington on the […]
The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has completed its 3rd and last review of Morocco’s economic performance under a program supported by a two-year Precautionary and Liquidity Line (PLL) arrangement, and reaffirmed Morocco’s continued qualification to access PLL resources. The current two-year PLL arrangement in an amount equivalent to SDR 3.2351 billion […]
Morocco’s railway authority received Wednesday a $112.3 million loan from the African Development Bank (AfDB) earmarked for doubling train tracks on the Settat-Marrakech route. The new deal signed in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, will enable Morocco’s National Railway Authority (ONCF) to double train tracks on the 142 km-long Settat-Marrakech route; a project which will help boost […]
The Pentagon is carefully studying military intervention options in Libya against self-style IS, a US official told reporters. “We’re looking at military options, a range of other options as… the situation in Libya unfolds,” said Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook. Cook also explained that the expansion of the terrorist group is a major concern to […]
Tunisian Prime Minister Essid appearing before the Parliament for a hearing over the social situation prevailing in the country called on all segments of Tunisia to support the government in finding solutions to unemployment, main reason of social riots that shook the country over the past two weeks. Habib Essid said that the issue of […]