Morocco: Senior officials banned from leaving the territory

The judicial noose is tightening around the management of the "Emergency Program" of national education (2009-2012). The investigating judge in charge of financial crimes at the Rabat Court of Appeal has decided to ban the former director of the AREF of Rabat-Salé (identified by the initials T.F.) and a regional inspector of the Academy from leaving the national territory.

According to judicial sources cited by Al3omk, this decision follows the instructions of the Public Prosecutor’s Office to deepen the investigation into suspicions of embezzlement and misappropriation of public funds. The investigations, initiated more than five years ago after an internal complaint, are focusing on irregularities that have tainted public procurement contracts for the acquisition of educational materials, concluded before the merger of the regional academies.

This case is a new chapter in the scandal of the "Emergency Program", a reform plan with a colossal envelope of 33 billion dirhams. Intended to revive the Moroccan public school system, this project has been the subject of multiple critical reports from the Court of Auditors, pointing to major shortcomings in governance, the fragmentation of contracts and the lack of tangible results despite the funds committed.