At the close of the international conference on “Building inclusive communities: integrating migrants, fighting violent extremism, involving citizens” on 22 November 2017, Lahcen Lamrani, First Deputy Mayor of Rabat (Morocco), presented several recommendations aimed at integrating migrants more effectively in his city and announced the setting up of a committee to deal with the matter within the municipality of Rabat.
The future committee will be established in partnership with the National Agency for the Promotion of Employment and Skills (ANAPEC) and the Entraide Nationale social welfare agency, two bodies in Morocco already involved in projects aimed at facilitating the integration of migrants into society and the labour market. It is due to hold its first meeting in December 2017.
In his conclusions, the Deputy Mayor of Rabat also underlined the need to institutionalise the co-operation between Morocco and the Council of Europe, and in particular with the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, in order to facilitate exchanges of know-how and tools between Moroccan and European elected representatives.
The Council of Europe Congress will continue its South-Med co-operation programme with the Moroccan authorities, whom it urges to apply for partner for local democracy status. Adopted by the Congress in 2014, this status enables elected representatives from local authorities in the Council of Europe’s neighbourhood to participate, within the Congress, in strengthening local and regional democracy.
The conference was held jointly by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe and the City of Rabat, in co-operation with the Moroccan Ministry for Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation, the Ministry of the Interior and the Moroccan Association of Chairs of Municipal Councils (AMPCC). It was part of the co-operation programme between the Congress and Morocco aimed at strengthening local and regional democracy against the background of the advanced regionalisation reform in Morocco.
