馃嚥馃嚘MoroccoNorth Africa
Government adopts bill on drug and pharmacy code, and decree on medical students' status
via Le Matin2 min read
The government, meeting in Rabat, adopted Bill No. 27.26, which amends and supplements Law No. 17.04 concerning the Drug and Pharmacy Code. Additionally, a draft decree regarding the status of students in faculties of medicine, pharmacy, and dental medicine was approved. These texts, presented by the Minister of Health and Social Protection, aim to adapt the legal framework to the evolving healthcare sector, addressing challenges in quality, access, and regulation. Government spokesperson Mustapha Baitas stated that the reform of the Drug Code seeks to enhance the quality and safety of health products, improve the national system's performance, and align Morocco with international pharmaceutical regulation standards. The bill strengthens the prerogatives of the Moroccan Agency for Medicines and Health Products, particularly in authorization, market control, inspection, and pharmacovigilance, to protect public health and improve access to medicines. The approved decree No. 2.26.342 clarifies the training and working conditions for medical, pharmacy, and dental students, including interns, externs, residents, and trainees, within territorial health groups. These measures are intended to build a more efficient and regulated healthcare system that meets international standards, while also focusing on the training and supervision of future healthcare professionals.
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This summary was AI-generated from a story originally published by Le Matin.
The unemployment gap between men and women in Morocco has increased to 9.7 percentage points since the pandemic, with the women's unemployment rate reaching 20.5% in 2025, compared to 10.8% for men, according to Bank Al-Maghrib's 2025 annual report. This gap was 5.7 points in 2019. Additionally, women earn less, with a nearly 23% wage gap in urban areas in 2019, according to the High Commission for Planning HCP. Morocco ranks in the bottom decile globally for gender equality, despite constitutional provisions. The activity rate for women decreased from 21.5% to 19% between 2019 and 2025, while for men it fell from 71% to 68.5%, maintaining a 49.5-point gap. Rural areas have seen a significant increase in disparities, largely due to successive years of drought impacting agricultural activity, which employs 86.4% of active rural women. Social norms also contribute to these inequalities; a 2017-2020 global values survey found that 64% of men and 48.3% of women in Morocco believe men should be prioritized for jobs when opportunities are scarce. Furthermore, 69% of men and 54% of women consider being a housewife as rewarding as paid employment. Practical difficulties such as insufficient work flexibility and inaccessible childcare services also hinder women's participation in the labor market. This issue extends beyond Morocco, with a World Bank study indicating that removing barriers to women's employment in the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan, and Pakistan MENAAP region c
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