Morocco

Our strategic focus for Morocco is building up know-how and capacity in comprehensive eye care, the current focus being on introducing IOL banks and comprehensive low vision / vision rehabilitation model programmes, as well as advocacy for inclusive education. This is fully in line with priorities outlined in the National Plan for Vision 2020 .
 
The cooperation with the MoH includes capacity building of relevant teams (technical and managerial), provision of and/or facilitating access to equipment and materials, as well as setting up structures and cost-recovery systems.
 
In a preparatory phase, clinical and educational staff has been trained in comprehensive low vision in cooperation with Venue Eye Hospital in India. Wherever possible the Regional Office will continue to facilitate twinning arrangements between partners on a national, sub-regional and regional level to optimise the use of local and regional resources and to decrease dependency on external support and overseas expertise. An important measure to support synergetic effects is to build on the expertise of a local team of competence who would identify and advice how to best create synergetic effects for Morocco.
 
In a next phase, education for children with impaired vision, advocacy for inclusive education as well as training of parents and teachers will become a priority.

The ‘UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’ was signed in March 2007 and ratified in December 2008.

In 2007, the Ministry of Social Development, Family and Solidarity, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Education together with non-governmental organisations and Disabled People’s Organisations embarked on the process of drafting a new law in accordance with the requirements of the UN Convention which has been finalised and brought before Parliament.