Month: July 2024

The General Union of Arab Journalists has renewed its “full support for Morocco’s territorial integrity in the face of foreign-backed separatist scheming”.

In a press release issued following the meeting of its General Secretariat on June 29-30 in Baghdad, the Union reaffirmed “its constant stances on the subject of Arab countries’ national sovereignty and its rejection of all forms of division and separatism”.

The General Union of Arab Journalists has also set out to send urgent letters to international human rights organisations, urging them to assume full responsibility for their failure to defend the rights of Palestinian people and to call for an end to the aggression against Gaza.

The Union also expressed its deep concern at recent developments in certain Arab countries, notably Yemen, and reaffirmed its steadfast stance in favor of legitimacy in Sudan.

It also highlighted its support for the unity of Libya and the independence of this country’s national decisions.

Source: Agence Marocaine De Pres
se

Some 16,300 people have benefited from the direct housing assistance program by July 2, Minister of National Planning, Urban Planning, Housing and Urban Policy, Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri, said on Wednesday.

Speaking at the House of Representatives, the Minister underlined that the value of the homes acquired as part of this program that targets Moroccans who are not property owners and have never received housing assistance, has amounted to 6.3 billion dirhams.

44% of the program’s beneficiaries are women, while 39% are young people under the age of 35 and 22% are Moroccan Expatriates, who have acquired homes worth 1.6 billion dirhams, El Mansouri pointed out.

Noting that housing sector indicators have risen since the launch of the program, she said that the number of authorized projects increased by 16%, cement sales by 20%, housing loans by 1.5%, while loans to property developers rose by 3.8%, between May 2023 and May 2024.

With regard to the distribution of beneficiaries by region, she noted that the
cities of Fez, Berrechid, Kénitra and Casablanca occupied the top five places, adding that 41% of the beneficiaries acquired houses priced at or below 300,000 dirhams.

In addition, the government official said that some 81,683 applications for housing assistance have been registered up to July 02, of which 89% were eligible, pointing out that 39% of applications were submitted by women, while 20% were made by Moroccan expatriates and 37% were submitted by young people.

El Mansouri also recalled the various partnerships that have been developed to successfully implement the program, citing the signing of an agreement with the Deposit and Management Fund (CDG) to create a digital platform to ensure the management of the subsidy mechanism.

Source: Agence Marocaine De Presse

Security units on Wednesday conducted a “Live Exercise” to simulate concurrent terrorist attacks in the Rades oil zone, the City of Culture and the Avenue Bourguiba in Tunis, spokesman for the Interior Ministry (MOI) Faker Bouzghaya said.

The exercise, which was attended by Interior Minister Khaled Nouri and Secretary of State for National Security Sofiene Bessadok, aims to assess the responsiveness of security units across the board, the same source told TAP.

The simulation aims to assess the level of strategic, tactical and operational coordination between all the stakeholders involved in managing a terrorist crisis.

The exercise was organised in collaboration with the national army and the Ministries of Cultural Affairs, of Health and of Industry.

Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

Filing for candidacy in October 6, 2024 presidential elections will begin late July or early August, said Spokesperson for the Independent High Authority for Elections (ISIE) Mohamed Tlili Mnasri.

President Kais Saied issued Tuesday a writ for the presidential elections scheduled for Sunday, October 6, 2024, the Presidency said.

Mnasri told TAP on Wednesday the election commission will release the calendar which will be approved as its board meets on Thursday.

The election campain is set to start on September 13 and close on October 5, date on which elctoral silence comes into place, the official further said. Voting in constituencies abroad will take place on October 4-6

Mnasri also said candidates can start seeking endorsements as soon as the appropriate form is published.

Each candidate needs to be backed by ten Assembly of People’s Represesentatives (ARP) or National Council of Regions and Districts members or by 40 presidents of the elected councils (local councils, councils of regions and councils
of districts).

The election authority said Tuesday its board will meet Thursday to approve the 2024 presidential election schedule and review the decision n°18 of August 4, 2014, on procedures for filing candidacies for the presidential race.

Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

Members of the National Council of Regions and Districts approved the entire draft of the council’s Rules of Procedure with 74 votes in favour during Wednesday’s plenary session.

Article 158 of the Rules of Procedure of the National Council of Regions and Districts stipulates that the bylaws shall come into effect upon approval, and shall be published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Tunisia (JORT).

Addressing the assembly upon the approval of the Rule of Procedures, Speaker Imed Derbali said the next step is to «prepare for what matters most: focusing on meeting citizens’ demands and fulfiling their expectations.»

He emphasised the commitment to work with local, regional, and district councils to crystallise the people’s demands across all territories, districts, and municipalities, and boost development.

Derbali indicated that the upcoming period will focus on achieving comprehensive and equitable development, stating that “our role is to empower the people through legislation that supports ag
ricultural development as a cornerstone of the economy and sovereignty. There is no sovereignty without food sovereignty […] Tunisia cannot continue importing food while it possesses 10 million hectares suitable for agriculture.”

He also highlighted the importance of energy, financial sovereignty, technology, and infrastructure development, all of which are central to the role of the National Council of Regions and Districts.

Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

Decree No. 403 of 2024 calling voters for the 2024 presidential election was published in the Official Gazette of the Tunisian Republic.

Article 1 of the decree states that voters will be called to the presidential ballot on October 6, 2024 to elect a President of the Republic. Voters in constituencies abroad will be called to vote on October 4, 5 and 6.

On Tuesday, the President of the Republic, Kaïs Saïed, issued the writ for the presidential elections to be held on October 6, 2024, according to a press release from the Presidency.

Contacted by TAP news agency on Wednesday, Mohamed tlili Mansri, spokesman for the Independent High Authority for Elections (ISIE), said that the ISIE would soon publish the electoral calendar, which would be approved at its Board meeting scheduled for Thursday.

The calendar for the presidential elections, he pointed out, will determine the period for the election campaign, which will begin on September 13 and continue until October 5, the date of the electoral silence.

Mans
ri also pointed out that candidates will be able to collect endorsements as soon as the form has been published.

In this context, he said that each candidate must be endorsed by 10 members of the Assembly of People’s Representatives or the National Council of Regions and Districts, or by 40 presidents of elected councils (local councils, regional councils and district councils).

The ISIE announced on Tuesday that its Board will hold a meeting on Thursday to adopt the calendar for the 2024 presidential elections and to revise Decision No. 18 of 2014, dated August 4, 2014, on the rules and procedures for presidential candidacies.

Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

A joint working team comprising representatives of the Ministry of Justice and the Bar Association will be set up to address legal aspects and improve working conditions in certain courts and prison units.

This initiative came out of a meeting between Justice Minister Leila Jaffel and Bar Association President Hatem Meziou on Wednesday, according to a statement from the Ministry of Justice.

Discussions focused on professional issues affecting lawyers, including the revision of the laws governing the profession and the decree on the operation of the lawyers’ pension fund.

Both parties stressed the importance of developing the Higher Institute of the Legal Profession, highlighting the integration of new technologies in training programmes and the ongoing efforts to digitise the justice system.

Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

Ben Arous: A fire broke out on Wednesday evening in several car parts warehouses in El Yahoudia, Fouchana delegation (Ben Arous governorate).

“No human casualties have been reported. However, there was material damage as a large number of spare parts were destroyed by the flames,” the regional director of civil protection in Ben Arous, Najemedine Belhaj Mohamed, told TAP news agency.

Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

President Kais Saied met on Wednesday afternoon at the Carthage Palace with Gilbert Houngbo, Director General of the International Labour Organisation (ILO), said the presidency.

The meeting was an opportunity for the Head of State to talk about workers’ struggles and the birth of the idea of an International Labour Organisation at the end of the 19th century, before it was created at the Versailles Conference after the First World War and became one of the specialised agencies of the United Nations after its creation.

In reviewing these historical stages, the President of the Republic highlighted the struggles for the right to work and for social justice.

“In Tunisia and throughout the world, we await the right to work and the guarantee of workers’ rights based on justice, because peace, security and stability within countries can only be achieved through justice that is fair to all,” the Head of State was quoted as saying.

The President of the Republic praised the ILO Director-General’s initiative to cr
eate a global coalition for social justice.

The world today needs such initiatives and new ways of thinking in order to meet the challenges facing the whole of humanity, the President stressed.

Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse