The Observatory of Government Action, affiliated with the Al-Hayat Center for the Development of Civil Society in Morocco, confirmed that among the most important challenges facing the government of Aziz Akhannouch are reform of the retirement system and the fight against corruption.
The Observatory revealed in a recent report that the increase in corruption has pushed Morocco back in the corruption perception index, going from 73rd to 97th in the world in five years. This situation reflects the growing spread of corruption in various sectors, as well as the weakness of efforts to combat it.
The Observatory indicated that the Akhannouch government has not yet been able to present a clear vision of the fight against corruption, adding that governmental and administrative institutions have not been sufficiently involved in the fight against this scourge.
In an attempt to defend the government’s policies, the official government spokesperson, Mustafa Baytas, confirmed that the fight against corruption was one of Rabat’s main concerns.
However, despite attempts to fight corruption, the Government Action Observatory denounced a clear lack of commitment on the part of the government and administrative institutions to implement the agreed measures as part of the anti-corruption strategy, warning that this lack of response will continue to weaken trust between citizens and the state, which in turn could hamper the government’s efforts to attract investment and support the economic development.
Regarding pension reform, the Observatory warns that the civil pension system risks going bankrupt by 2028because it is expected that the system will exhaust all its reserves, forcing the State to pump around 14 billion dirhams per year to maintain the continuity of pensions for the benefit of retirees.
In 2016, the government launched a standard reform of pension systems based on three basic principles : the increase in the value of contributions, the increase in the retirement age to 65 and the reduction in the value of pensions. This strategy means, according to the Observatory, that workers and public employees will have to bear almost all of the costs of this reform.
“The election of the government is a success, but it is not enough”Idriss El-Fina, an economic expert, told Al-Arab, adding that “the issue of governance is the real debate that needs to be opened, because the fund needs good management.”
Nadia Fettah, Minister of Economy and Finance, called earlier this year on the House of Representatives to begin reforming the system, aware that the financial situation of the basic pension and retirement systems remains difficult.
Economic analysts consider drought, high inflation and social demands for better wages to be factors that will increase pressure on the issue of pension reformemphasizing the need for social dialogue between the government, unions and employers to achieve a consensual and acceptable reform formula.
A recent report from the Central Bank of Morocco recommends the implementation a systematic and coordinated reform of this sector, by introducing a two-tier system – public and private – whose strategic orientations were defined in the social dialogue agreement.
