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The response of the government to the crisis triggered by the coronavirus pandemic was active, as shown by the efficient decisions undertaken, said Tuesday Head of Government, Saad Dine El Otmani. The government’s approach has proven its effectiveness in several sectors, including education and health, he underlined in his answser to the groups during a session of the House of Advisors. This session was dedicated to the presentation made Monday by El Otmani before the Parliament on “the management of lockdown for the after May 20 period”. The government must address the health and economy challenges as well as safeguarding the health of citizens, he said, adding that despite these difficult challenges, the situation was effectively managed under the leadership of HM King Mohammed VI. Regarding industrial units, he recalled that it had been decided from the start to keep them open, particularly those that respected safety standards, which made it possible to ensure the continuity of production, particularly of masks, medicines and food products. According to him, the control committees have increased visits to production units, as they conducted a total of 13,000 visits to more than 1,700 companies. In addition, several closure decisions were taken, he pointed out. Morocco has succeeded in transforming part of the industrial activities to fight against the pandemic, El Otmani said, while mentioning in this regard the production of masks and various protective devices, as well as products intended in part to meet foreign demand, in addition to “Made in Morocco” disinfectants. Concerning support provided to several categories granted by the Special Fund dedicated to the management of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Head of Government welcomed the unprecedented action carried out by the Ministry of Economy, Finance and of the administrative reform and the relevant stakeholders, adding that nearly 4 million households working in the informal sector have benefited from support from the Fund, 37% of whom are from rural areas. In this regard, he said that the ministry had launched a digital platform dedicated to receiving complaints on this matter. The national economy is based on solid foundations, he said, noting that several sectors almost stopped all activities, in particular tourism, aviation, exports and the car industry, which impacts the economic economy and the GDP, hence the need to “resort to an amending finance bill”. Regarding the situation of Moroccans stranded abroad, whose number reached 31,819 on Monday evening, the head of government said that the relevant ministry as well as the various concerned services are fully mobilized and have taken a series of measures, including the census, accommodation, medical care and the regularization of their administrative situation, adding that a road map is being drawn up for their repatriation. This session was scheduled as part of a meeting of the Conference of Presidents held on Monday, in the presence of the speaker of the House of Advisors, Hakim Benchamach, after listening to the presentation on the management of lockdown by the Head of Government during a joint meeting of the two Houses of Parliament.

Twenty-five new cases of infection with the new coronavirus (Covid-19) were confirmed in Morocco until Wednesday at 10:00…

MDN