Hassan Tarek, Ombudsman of the Kingdom, affirmed on Wednesday in Rabat that the “Towards Equality Management” program represents an institutional and civil initiative aimed at empowering women to access their rights in administrative services and improving governance quality.
Speaking at the opening of the institutional forum organized by the Ombudsman Foundation under the theme “Towards Equality Management: For Public Policies Based on Gender”, Tarek highlighted that the program relies on public dialogue and institutional advocacy, based on the reality of complaints and grievances related to women’s access to administrative services, and draws on the institution’s mandate to enhance and improve administrative governance.
He explained that the forum aims to assess public efforts in diagnosing gender-based discrimination across economic, social, and administrative fields, and to implement equality approaches in public policy-making, government program structuring, local democracy, budget design, and legislative performance enhancement.
Tarek stressed that the forum’s main goal is to establish a collective reference for institutional dialogue on inequality, particularly regarding the relationship between citizens and administration, and to mobilize national institutions to overcome these challenges.
Naima Ibn Yahya, Minister of Solidarity, Social Integration, and Family, emphasized the forum’s importance in exploring ways to achieve justice and gender equality in all sectors, through public policies that integrate a gender perspective. She noted that Morocco has accumulated significant experience in this area, especially after adopting the National Strategy for Gender Integration in Public Policies in 2005, followed by successive national plans to enhance gender equality and ensure coherence across public policies. She also highlighted the parliament’s role in incorporating gender considerations into laws and practices, including adopting gender-sensitive legislation.
Mariam Ouchen Al-Nassiri, Head of the UN Women Office in Morocco, described the initiative as an ambitious step reflecting a genuine commitment to making public administration an effective tool for social transformation based on equality, fairness, and justice. She emphasized that the forum reinforces the notion that “Equality Management” is not merely a technical goal or administrative measure but a fundamental democratic endeavor and a cornerstone for building the social state envisioned in Morocco’s new development model.
Forum participants, including officials and experts from governmental, constitutional, and civil institutions, will discuss ways to strengthen administrative gender equality, evaluate the practical application of public policies, and address associated challenges.
The “Towards Equality Management” program also seeks to review legal texts, regulations, and administrative practices to detect bias or discrimination against women, and to propose practical, implementable reforms that promote service justice from a gender fairness perspective. It aims to build a knowledge base that supports the Ombudsman’s annual report and enriches public debate on integrating gender perspectives into public policies.
