Morocco Tightens Market Controls to Combat Ramadan Price Gouging

Teams from the Ministry of the Interior are on alert to strengthen controls and prevent cheating in the markets during Ramadan. To effectively combat this recurring practice of anarchic price increases by unscrupulous merchants, an important meeting, chaired by the Delegate Minister Noureddine Boutayeb, was held this week at the ministry’s headquarters.

The objectives of this meeting were both to "take stock of the supply of markets and the level of prices, but also to coordinate the control operations scheduled for this holy month," reports the site le360, citing Al Massae and Al Akhbar.

The ministry states that "the markets are currently sufficiently supplied to meet all the needs of consumers during the month of Ramadan. This is particularly the case for products that are in great demand during this period. The same goes for the situation of the prices of basic necessities, which the department considers normal and stable."

All these measures did not prevent the Delegate Minister from calling on his services to be vigilant and rigorous in handling the various complaints that should arrive during this holy month. Above all, recalls the two media, a special number (5757) has been set up to collect consumer complaints about product prices and quality. This can allow the ministry’s agents to be informed of cases of cheating and react quickly.