conventional long form: Kingdom of Morocco
conventional short form: Morocco local short form: Al Maghrib local long form: Al Mamlakah al Maghribiyah
Government type:
constitutional monarchy
Capital:
Rabat
Administrative
divisions:
37 provinces and 2 wilayas*; Agadir, Al Hoceima,
Azilal, Beni Mellal, Ben Slimane, Boulemane, Casablanca*, Chaouen, El
Jadida, El Kelaa des Sraghna, Er Rachidia, Essaouira, Fes, Figuig,
Guelmim, Ifrane, Kenitra, Khemisset, Khenifra, Khouribga, Laayoune,
Larache, Marrakech, Meknes, Nador, Ouarzazate, Oujda, Rabat-Sale*,
Safi, Settat, Sidi Kacem, Tanger, Tan-Tan, Taounate, Taroudannt, Tata,
Taza, Tetouan, Tiznit; three additional provinces of Ad Dakhla (Oued
Eddahab), Boujdour, and Es Smara as well as parts of Tan-Tan and
Laayoune fall within Moroccan-claimed Western Sahara note: as part of a 1997 decentralization/regionalization law
passed by the legislature 16 new regions (provided below) were created
although full details and scope of the reorganization are limited:
Casablanca, Chaouia-Ourdigha, Doukkala-Abda, Fes-Boulmane,
Gharb-Chrarda-Beni Hssen, Guelmim-Es Smara, Laayoune-Boujdour-Sakia El
Hamra, Marrakech-Tensift-El Haouz, Meknes-Tafilalet, Oriental, Oued
Eddahab-Lagouira, Rabat-Sale-Zemmour-Zaer, Souss-Massa-Draa,
Tadla-Azilal, Tangier-Tetouan, Taza-Al Hoceima-Taounate
Independence:
2 March 1956 (from France)
National holiday:
Throne Day (accession of King MOHAMED VI to the
throne), 30 July (1999)
Constitution:
10 March 1972, revised 4 September 1992, amended
(to create bicameral legislature) September 1996
Legal system:
based on Islamic law and French and Spanish civil
law system; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional
Chamber of Supreme Court
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal (as of January 2003)
Executive branch:
chief of state: King MOHAMED VI (since 30
July 1999) head of government: Prime Minister Driss JETTOU (since 9
October 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister
appointed by the monarch following legislative elections
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament consists of an upper house
or Chamber of Counselors (270 seats; members elected indirectly by
local councils, professional organizations, and labor syndicates for
nine-year terms; one-third of the members are renewed every three
years) and a lower house or Chamber of Representatives (325 seats; 295
by multi-seat constituencies and 30 from national lists of women;
members elected by popular vote for five-year terms) elections: Chamber of Counselors - last held 6 October 2003
(next to be held NA 2006); Chamber of Representatives - last held 27
September 2002 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: Chamber of Counselors - percent of vote by
party - NA; seats by party - RNI 42, MDS 33, UC 28, MP 27, PND 21, PI
21, USFP 16, MNP 15, PA 13, FFD 12, other 42; Chamber of
Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - USFP
50, PI 48, PJD 42, RNI 41, MP 27, MNP 18, UC 16, PND 12, PPS 11, UD
10, other 50
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court (judges are appointed on the
recommendation of the Supreme Council of the Judiciary, presided over
by the monarch)
Political parties and
leaders:
Action Party or PA [Muhammad EL IDRISSI];
Alliance of Liberties or ADL [Ali BELHAJ]; Annahj Addimocrati or
Annahj [Abdellah EL HARIF]; Avant Garde Social Democratic Party or
PADS [Ahmed BENJELLOUN]; Citizen Forces or FC [Abderrahman LAHJOUJI];
Citizen's Initiatives for Development [Mohamed BENHAMOU];
Constitutional Union or UC [Mohamed ABIED (interim)]; Democratic and
Independence Party or PDI [Abdelwahed MAACH]; Democratic and Social
Movement or MDS [Mahmoud ARCHANE]; Democratic Socialist Party or PSD [Aissa
OUARDIGHI]; Democratic Union or UD [Bouazza IKKEN]; Environment and
Development Party or PED [Ahmed EL ALAMI]; Front of Democratic Forces
or FFD [Thami EL KHYARI]; Istiqlal Party (Independence Party) or PI [Abbas
El FASSI]; Justice and Development Party (formerly the Constitutional
and Democratic Popular Movement) or PJD [Abdelkrim EL KHATIB];
Moroccan Liberal Party or PML [Mohamed ZIANE]; National Democratic
Party or PND [Abdallah KADIRI]; National Ittihadi Congress Party or
CNI [Abdelmajid BOUZOUBAA]; National Popular Movement or MNP [Mahjoubi
AHERDANE]; National Rally of Independents or RNI [Ahmed OSMAN];
National Union of Popular Forces or UNFP [Abdellah IBRAHIM]; Parti Al
Ahd or Al Ahd [Najib EL OUAZZANI, chairman]; Party of Progress and
Socialism or PPS [Ismail ALAOUI]; Party of Renewal and Equity or PRE [Chakir
ACHABAR]; Party of the Unified Socialist Left or GSU [Mohamed Ben Said
AIT IDDER]; Popular Movement or MP [Mohamed LAENSER]; Reform and
Development Party or PRD [Abderrahmane EL KOUHEN]; Social Center Party
or PSC [Lahcen MADIH]; Socialist Union of Popular Forces or USFP
[Mohammed El-YAZGHI]
Political pressure
groups and leaders:
Democratic Confederation of Labor or CDT [Noubir
AMAOUI]; General Union of Moroccan Workers or UGTM [Abderrazzak AFILAL];
Moroccan Employers Association or CGEM [Hassan CHAMI]; National Labor
Union of Morocco or UNMT [Abdelslam MAATI]; Union of Moroccan Workers
or UMT [Mahjoub BENSEDDIK]
chief of mission: Ambassador Abdallah
MAAROUFI consulate(s) general: New York FAX: [1] (202) 265-0161 telephone: [1] (202) 462-7979 through 7982 chancery: 1601 21st Street NW, Washington, DC 20009
Diplomatic
representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Mr. Thomas T.
RILEY embassy: 2 Avenue de Mohamed El Fassi, Rabat mailing address: PSC 74, Box 021, APO AE 09718 telephone: [212] (37) 76 22 65 FAX: [212] (37) 76 56 61 consulate(s) general: Casablanca
Flag description:
red with a green pentacle (five-pointed, linear
star) known as Sulayman's (Solomon's) seal in the center of the flag;
red and green are traditional colors in Arab flags, although the use
of red is more commonly associated with the Arab states of the Persian
gulf; design dates to 1912