At the outset I would like to congratulate you. Sir. on your election as President of the General Assembly at its seventy-eighth session, and to wish you success during your term in office. I also commend the outstanding efforts of your predecessor. Mr. Csaba Korosi. during his presidency of the previous session. I would like to take this opportunity to reiterate the support of the Kingdom of Morocco for the initiatives of Secretary- General Guterres aimed at enabling the Organization to address the world’s pressing challenges, which he outlines in his report Our Common Agenda (A/75/982). In that context. Morocco looks forward to participating in and contributing to the Summit of the Future in 2024.
I would like to express the gratitude of the Kingdom of Morocco to all the Heads of State and Government and Ministers who have expressed their solidarity and support to us following the earthquake that struck our country, and to thank them for their readiness to stand with my country in confronting the repercussions of that natural disaster. Morocco has been dealing with the consequences of the earthquake, which led to the deaths of nearly 3.000 people and injured 5.700 others, in addition to grave material losses. We are tackling those repercussions with determination, seriousness and solidarity, all of them values upheld by the people of Morocco. From the first moments after the earthquake. His Majesty King Mohammed VI gave instructions for mobilizing all State institutions, including the armed forces, national and local authorities, public forces and civil prevention teams, to take all the urgent measures needed to accelerate the rescue and relief of the injured and provide assistance to the families affected. We immediately established an inter-ministerial committee to develop an emergency programme for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the areas affected.
Under the personal leadership and direct supervision of King Mohammed. Morocco has moved from the initial stage of urgent rescue and relief to that of rehabilitation and reconstruction. He has given instructions for launching a well- studied. integrated, ambitious programme aimed at addressing all the consequences of this natural disaster thoroughly, quickly and consistently. We have allocated an estimated $12 billion to the issue for the next five years, with a first phase covering all the areas affected and providing services to 4.2 million people. The multidimensional programme was adopted following the identification and detailed assessment of the various needs, and it includes projects for rebuilding homes and restoring damaged infrastructure, as well as promoting
socioeconomic development in the affected areas. It will be financed from the State budget, the contributions of the committee and the special solidarity account established to address the effects of the earthquake, as well as from international support and cooperation. King Mohammed has also stressed the importance of ensuring that the rehabilitation and reconstruction process is consistent with the architectural specifics and traditions of the areas affected. The process must respect the residents’ dignity, norms and traditions. In line with those measures, all components of Moroccan society, both inside and outside the country, have been participating in national efforts to provide assistance to the people affected, in a demonstration of our strong national unity and solidarity in difficult circumstances.
The earthquake that struck Morocco, the hurricane and floods that hit our sister State of Libya and the phenomenon of climate change generally continue to represent the greatest challenge facing humankind across the world. That is why today, more than ever, strengthening prevention, resilience and international cooperation must be priorities of the international community.
This session is being held in a critical global context, marked by many challenges related to geopolitical tensions, climate change, poverty, migration, terrorism, hate speech, pandemics and natural disasters. Nevertheless, the current pace of scientific and technological progress may constitute a source of optimism, provided that the current challenges lead to international cooperation and solidarity in the promotion of scientific research, including artificial intelligence, and encourage sharing its benefits in strategic priority areas such as health security, energy transformation, food and water security, modern technologies and natural-disaster mitigation.
The current circumstances require national policies aligned with our international commitments by focusing on the promotion of resilient societies through a comprehensive approach based on the principles of equity and social justice in order to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). They also require that we promote a multilateral system based on cooperation and solidarity, with the United Nations at its core.
That approach was adopted by the Kingdom of Morocco, in line with the lofty directives of His Majesty King Mohammed VI. to launch structural workshops. foremost of which is the new development model, in order to enhance sustainable development, promote energy transformation, ensure the provision of water and social services and address natural disasters as part of an integrated vision in line with the SDGs.
His Majesty King Mohammed VI attaches great importance to the empowerment of women and the family, in general. That is why His Majesty today issued a lofty letter to the Prime Minister to review the family code through inclusive consultations, with the participation of all stakeholders, for the subsequent submission of proposals to His Majesty to amend it within six months.
The Kingdom of Morocco expresses deep concern about the spread of hate speech, especially through social media. This sows the seeds of division within societies and among cultures and States and exacerbates violent extremism. It is the main factor of global instability. That is what His Majesty King Mohammed VI highlighted in his lofty message to the participants of the ninth session of the Global Forum of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, held in the city of Fez on 22 and 23 November 2022. when he said:
“Our civilization has never confronted such numerous risks. Coexistence has never faced such daily challenges. Rarely have we feared and suspected others like we do today, and rarely has every triggered event been used to incite and inflame feelings of fear and hatred as it is today.”
We reaffirm the Kingdom of Morocco’s categorical rejection and condemnation of all attacks on religious symbols and holy books. We strongly denounce the desecration and burning of the Holy Qur’an, which insults more than 2 billion Muslims around the world and is a violation of the most basic human rights. The relevant countries must take all necessary measures to prevent such violations.
In line with that position, in July the Kingdom of Morocco presented resolution 77/318. on combating hate speech, which was unanimously adopted in the General Assembly by the Member States, condemning the desecration of holy books. For the first time, such acts were classified as a violation of international law. The resolution also called on the Secretary-General to organize the first conference on hate speech in 2025.
We recognize the important role of sports in bringing nations together and spreading a culture of
peace and tolerance. Consequently, the Kingdom of Morocco submitted its candidacy, jointly with Spain and Portugal, to host the 2030 World Cup finals. His Majesty King Mohammed VI highlighted the meaning of that unprecedented candidacy, which brings together two continents and two civilizations — Africa and Europe—and unites the two banks of the Mediterranean, thus promoting the ambitions and aspirations of the peoples of the region for greater cooperation, understanding and communication.
The Kingdom of Morocco remains committed to a definitive political solution to the artificial regional dispute over the Moroccan Sahara, in order to promote development, stability and peace in the region and the African continent. Morocco continues to support the efforts of the Secretary-General and his Special Envoy. Mr. Staffan de Mistura. to relaunch a series of round tables, with the same format and the same participants, especially Algeria, the main party to that conflict, in accordance with Security Council resolution 2654 (2022). We reaffirm that a definitive solution can only be political, realistic, practical and based on consensus. The initiative for autonomy, as part of the Kingdom of Morocco’s territorial integrity and national sovereignty, remains the one and only solution to this artificial regional conflict. There is no alternative.
On that basis, more than 100 countries from all over the world support today the Moroccan autonomy initiative. Approximately 30 States and regional organizations have opened general consulates in Laayoune and Dakhla. thus affirming their full support for the Moroccan Sahara.
As part of our new development model for the southern regions, the Kingdom of Morocco has allocated a budget of over $10 billion to date. Approximately 81 per cent of that model has been accomplished by launching many projects for achieving socioeconomic development and conducting trade between Africa and the rest of the world. The Special Envoy of the Secretary- General. Mr. Staffan de Mistura. personally witnessed those achievements during his visit to Laayoune and Dakhla. in the Moroccan Sahara, at the beginning of this month.
Those great efforts are part of the lofty directives of His Majesty King Mohammed VI. as mentioned in his speech commemorating the forty-seventh anniversary of the Green March on 6 November 2022. when he said: “Our defence of the Moroccan Sahara is based on a comprehensive perspective that includes diplomatic and political work, as well as advancing the economic, social and human development of the region.”
The Kingdom of Morocco reiterates its deep concern about the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Tindouf camps in Algeria. The host country. Algeria, has illegally delegated its authority in the camps to a separatist armed group with confirmed and documented links to international terrorist and criminal networks, a disturbing situation that requires the attention of the international community, particularly in view of Algeria’s refusal to allow a registration and census of the people detained in the camps, which is a clear and flagrant violation of international law and of repeated calls from the Security Council since 2011. The failure to register the population detained in Tindouf has permitted looting of the humanitarian aid sent to the camps, as has been confirmed in reports by international, regional and non-governmental organizations, most recently a World Food Programme report issued in January.
Morocco stands in full solidarity with our sister Maghreb country of Libya in the wake of the unprecedented floods in various parts of Libya that have resulted in enormous and serious loss of human life and property. We express our sincere condolences and sympathies to the State, to our brother people of Libya and to the families of the victims of that painful tragedy. We wish all the injured a swift recovery.
In accordance with King Mohammed’s directives. Morocco will continue to stand with Libya’s legitimate institutions and support the international efforts aimed at resolving the crisis there based on the agreements concluded between the various Libyan parties. First and foremost, we support the efforts of the United Nations aimed at reaching a permanent political solution to the Libyan crisis as outlined in the Skhirat agreement of 2015. In that context. Morocco hosted a series of meetings that resulted in an agreement in October 2022 between Libya’s Speaker of the House of Representatives and President of the High State Council on implementing the outcomes of the Bouznika meeting on sovereign positions and the unification of executive authority. And from 23 May to 6 June of this year a meeting of the 6+6 joint committee of the House of Representatives and the High State Council was also held in Bouznika for the preparation of electoral laws.
resulting in major agreements on the organization of elections in Libya.
Morocco considers the Palestinian question a national priority and a focus of its foreign policy. We call for avoiding any kind of escalation or violence in order to prevent the situation from getting out of control and to spare the Middle East region from further tensions that may hinder the revival of the peace process. In that regard. King Mohammed, in his capacity as Chair of the Al-Quds Committee of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, expressed the importance that Morocco attaches to the Palestinian question, saying
“With the same seriousness and determination, we stress Morocco’s firm position with regard to achieving a just solution to the Palestinian question and ensuring the legitimate right of our brother Palestinian people to establish an independent State, with East Jerusalem as its capital, in order to ensure security and stability for all peoples of the region.”
Morocco rejects all unilateral measures that undermine the legal and historical status of Al-Quds Al-Sharif. We reaffirm our support for the Palestinian Authority, under the leadership of President Mahmoud Abbas, and for all its decisions aimed at preserving the legitimate right of the Palestinian people to achieve their aspirations and establish an independent State, with East Jerusalem as its capital, along the 4 June 1967 borders, and in accordance with an internationally agreed two-State solution and respect for the principles of international legitimacy and the relevant resolutions.
In conclusion. I want to underscore the responsibility that all of us have as Member States to create the conditions that the United Nations needs to succeed, by providing it with the necessary resources and mobilizing the political will to reform it and streamline its working mechanisms so as to build a more just and more humane multilateral global system in a spirit of solidarity. King Mohammed emphasized that task in his address to the General Assembly at its fifty-ninth session, where he called for
“Must in the United Nations as the conscience of humankind and the bedrock of a new world order, where the values of peace, global security, joint development, equality, tolerance, democracy and solidarity prevail.” (A/59/PV.4, p.23)