The Minister of Economy and Finance emphasized that strengthening the foundations of the welfare state is the central theme of the 2023 fiscal year budget bill, which seeks to continue building the welfare state and reinforce its pillars by extending social protection to vulnerable and disadvantaged groups and improving the purchasing power of the middle class, in addition to upgrading healthcare services and public schools and improving access to housing.
During her presentation of the 2023 Finance Bill before both houses of Parliament, the same government official yesterday, Thursday, October 20, that the bill aims to complete the social protection project as outlined by His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God assist him, which constitutes an unprecedented social revolution, by continuing to extend mandatory health insurance to cover all social groups.
She stated that, under the plan, the government will begin transferring beneficiaries of the “RAMED” system to the mandatory health insurance system by the end of 2022, and will allocate 9.5 billion dirhams to cover the costs of basic mandatory health insurance premiums for 4 million vulnerable households.
According to the Minister of Finance, the project also aims to support the modernization of the healthcare system by allocating an additional 4.6 billion dirhams, bringing the health sector’s budget to over 28 billion dirhams. It also aims to develop human resources and improve their working conditions, as well as to review the training system. Additionally, 5,500 new positions will be created in the health sector, and 1.5 billion dirhams will be allocated to increase the salaries of healthcare professionals.
The Minister of Economy stated that the project aims to ensure the equitable distribution of hospital services across the country, with regional hospitals to be opened in Kenitra, Ifrane, and Al Hoceima, primary health centers to be upgraded, and three university hospitals to be established in Errachidia, Beni Mellal, and Guelmim.
Medicines will be made available and their costs reduced for low-income families, and the budget allocated for medicines will be increased to approximately 2 billion dirhams to cover the costs of medicines for the needy in hospitals, Import duties will be waived for medicines intended to treat chronic and costly diseases, while taxes on sugar-containing medicines will be increased to protect citizens’ health.
The government will also begin implementing a program to expand family allowances, which will benefit 7 million children from vulnerable families and 3 million vulnerable households without school-age children. A new approach based on targeted support will also be adopted, aimed at vulnerable groups through the use of the Unified Social Registry. This initiative will be funded through the gradual reform of the social security system, beginning at the end of 2023.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Economy and Finance stated that the government will work to implement a roadmap for reforming the education system, thereby improving conditions for students, teachers, and educational institutions, by allocating an additional 6.5 billion dirhams, bringing the sector’s budget to 69 billion dirhams. The Finance Act also allocated 2 billion dirhams to expand access to early childhood education, 1.8 billion dirhams to increase the number of beneficiaries of school cafeterias and boarding schools, and 1.6 billion dirhams to the “Taysir” conditional education support program.
The 2023 Finance Bill also places great emphasis on improving the status of teachers and educational staff by creating more than 20,000 new positions and settling promotion arrears, while placing a strong focus on training, for which 4 billion dirhams will be allocated for the 2022–2026 period. In addition, 224 educational institutions will be built and 1,746 school buildings will be renovated.
The minister emphasized that, as part of the initiative, the government is committed to providing higher education faculty with a new framework that recognizes their efforts, upholds the principle of merit, and enhances the university’s appeal; the draft finance bill has allocated 600 million dirhams for this purpose.
The Minister of Economy praised the climate of trust that characterized the social dialogue sessions, emphasizing the government’s commitment to institutionalizing social dialogue. As part of the draft finance bill, the government has allocated approximately 4 billion dirhams to increase wages and benefits in the health, education, and higher education sectors, in addition to reducing the tax burden on middle-class workers and retirees, a measure that will cost 2.4 billion dirhams.
Direct support for families will also be introduced to help them purchase homes and improve access to housing, replacing the current approach based on tax expenditures and the expansion of the housing stock, whose economic and social impact is difficult to assess.
On the employment front, based on the 2023 Finance Bill, the government will continue to implement the “Orash” program, which aims to create 250,000 jobs in 2022 and 2023. The 2023 Finance Bill has allocated approximately 2.25 billion dirhams to this program, in addition to the “Fursah,” to which the bill allocates 1.25 billion dirhams, and the “Intilaqa” program. The 2023 Finance Bill also provides for the creation of 48,212 public sector positions, compared to 43,860 in 2022.
Regarding support for citizens’ purchasing power, “the Compensation Fund will continue to fulfill its role by allocating 26 billion dirhams under the draft finance bill, as the cost of wheat import subsidies is expected to rise this year to exceed 8.5 billion dirhams, in addition to 1.3 billion dirhams earmarked to subsidize national soft wheat flour. Expenditures for butane gas subsidies have also risen by 70%, amounting to 97 dirhams per 12-kg cylinder, and total compensation costs are expected to increase by 79%, excluding subsidies for public transport operators,” added the Minister of Economy and Finance.
Sheikh Al-Wali
