1.
Western Sahara
–
Its surface area amounts to 266,000 square kilometres. It is one of the most sparsely populated territories in the world, the population is estimated at just over 500,000, of which nearly 40% live in Laayoune, the largest city in Western Sahara. Occupied by Spain until the late 20th century, Western Sahara has been on the United Nations list of non-self-governing territories since 1963 after a Moroccan demand and it is the most populous territory on that list, and by far the largest in area. In 1965, the UN General Assembly adopted its first resolution on Western Sahara, one year later, a new resolution was passed by the General Assembly requesting that a referendum be held by Spain on self-determination. In 1975, Spain relinquished the control of the territory to a joint administration by Morocco. A war erupted between those countries and a Sahrawi nationalist movement, the Polisario Front, which proclaimed the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic with a government in exile in Tindouf, Algeria. Mauritania withdrew its claims in 1979, and Morocco eventually secured de facto control of most of the territory, including all the major cities and natural resources. The United Nations considers the Polisario Front to be the representative of the Sahrawi people. As of 2017, no member state of the United Nations has ever recognized Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara. However, a number of countries have expressed their support for a recognition of the Moroccan annexation of the territory as an autonomous part of the Kingdom. Overall, the annexation has not garnered as much attention in the community as many other disputed annexations. Internationally, countries such as Russia have taken a generally ambiguous and neutral position on each sides claims, both Morocco and Polisario have sought to boost their claims by accumulating formal recognition, essentially from African, Asian, and Latin American states in the developing world. The Polisario Front has won recognition for SADR from 37 states. Morocco has won recognition or support for its position from several African governments and from most of the Muslim world, in both instances, recognitions have, over the past two decades, been extended and withdrawn according to changing international trends. Western Sahara is located in Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean and it also borders Algeria to the northeast. The land is some of the most arid and inhospitable on the planet, the land along the coast is low, flat desert and rises, especially in the north, to small mountains reaching up to 600 metres on the eastern side. While the area can experience flash flooding in the spring, there are no permanent streams, at times a cool off-shore current can produce fog and heavy dew. The earliest known inhabitants of Western Sahara were the Gaetuli, depending on the century, Roman-era sources describe the area as inhabited by Gaetulian Autololes or the Gaetulian Daradae tribes
Western Sahara
–
Commemoration of the 30th independence day from
Spain in the
Liberated Territories (2005)
Western Sahara
–
Western Sahara الصحراء الغربية aṣ-Ṣaḥrā’ al-Gharbīyah Sahara Occidental Taneẓroft Tutrimt
Western Sahara
–
North Western Sahara landscape.
Western Sahara
–
Dakhla Bay, near
Dakhla.
2.
Moroccan Dirham
–
The dirham, plural, is the currency of Morocco. The plural form is pronounced darahim, although in French and English dirhams is commonly used and its ISO4217 code is MAD. It is subdivided into 100 santimat, the dirham is issued by the Bank Al-Maghrib, the central bank of Morocco. Before the introduction of a modern coinage in 1882, Morocco issued copper coins denominated in falus, from 1882, the dirham became a subdivision of the Moroccan rial, with 50 Mazunas =10 dirham =1 rial. When most of Morocco became a French protectorate in 1912 it switched to the Moroccan franc, the dirham was reintroduced on 16 October 1960. It replaced the franc as the unit of currency but, until 1974. In 1974, the replaced the franc. In 1960, silver 1 dirham coins were introduced and these were followed by nickel 1 dirham and silver 5 dirham coins in 1965. In 1974, with the introduction of the santim, a new coinage was introduced in denominations of 1,5,10,20 and 50 santimat and 1 dirham. The 1 santim coins were aluminium, the 5 up to 20 santimat were minted in brass, cupro-nickel 5 dirham coins were added in 1980 and changed to a bi-metal coin in 1987. The bi-metal coins bear two year designations for the issue date—1987 in the Gregorian calendar and the 1407 in the Islamic calendar, the 1 santim was only minted until 1987 when new designs were introduced, with a ½ dirham replacing the 50 santimat without changing the size or composition. The new 5 dirham coin was bimetallic, as was the 10 dirham coin introduced in 1995, cupro-nickel 2 dirham coins were introduced in 2002. In 2011, a new series of coins has been issued, the first notes denominated in dirham were overprints on earlier franc notes, in denominations of 50 dirhams and 100 dirhams. In 1965, new notes were issued for 5,10 and 50 dirhams,100 dirham notes were introduced in 1970, followed by 200 dirham notes in 1991 and 20 dirham notes in 1996. 5 dirham notes were replaced by coins in 1980, with the same happening to 10 dirham notes in 1995, in mid-October 2009, Bank Al-Maghrib issued four million 50-dirham banknotes to commemorate the banks 50th anniversary. The commemorative note measures 147 x 70 mm and features the portraits of Kings Mohammed VI, Hassan II, the back of the notes features the headquarters of Bank Al-Maghrib in Rabat. The speech delivered in 1959 by Mohammed V at the opening of Bank Al-Maghrib is microprinted on the back, in December 2012, Bank-Al Maghrib issued a 25-dirham banknote to commemorate the 25th anniversary of banknote production at the Moroccan State Printing Works, Dar As-Sikkah. It is the first banknote in the world to be printed on Durasafe, the front of the commemorative note features an intaglio vignette and a watermark of King Mohammed VI, and a magenta-green color shift security thread
Moroccan Dirham
–
Coins and banknotes in Moroccan dirhams (MAD).
Moroccan Dirham
–
10 dirhams
Moroccan Dirham
3.
Fiscal year
–
A fiscal year is the period used by governments for accounting and budget purposes, which vary between countries. It is also used for reporting by business and other organizations. Taxation laws generally require accounting records to be maintained and taxes calculated on an annual basis, the calculation of tax on an annual basis is especially relevant for direct taxation, such as income tax. Many annual government fees—such as Council rates, licence fees, etc. —are also levied on a year basis. The fiscal year end is the date marks the end of the fiscal year. Some companies—such as Cisco Systems—end their fiscal year on the day of the week each year. Under such a system, some years will have 52 weeks. Many universities have a year which ends during the summer. In the northern hemisphere this is July to the next June, in the southern hemisphere this is calendar year, January to December. Some media/communication-based organizations use a broadcast calendar as the basis for their fiscal year, the American football league NFL uses the term league year, which in effect forms the leagues fiscal year. In Afghanistan, the year was recently changed from 1 Hamal –29 Hoot to 1 Jadi –30 Qaus. The fiscal year runs with the Afghan calendar, thus resulting in difference of the Gregorian dates once in a four-year span, in Australia, a fiscal year is commonly called a financial year and starts on 1 July and ends on the next 30 June. Financial years are designated by the year of the second half of the period. For example, financial year 2017 is the 12-month period ending on 30 June 2017 and it is used for official purposes, by individual taxpayers and by the overwhelming majority of business enterprises. Business enterprises may opt to use a year that ends at the end of a week. All entities within the one group must use the financial year. The Commonwealth adopted the near-ubiquitous financial year standard since its inception in 1901, the reason given for the change was for convenience, as Parliament typically sits during May and June, while it was difficult for it to meet in November and December to pass a budget. In Austria the fiscal year is the year,1 January to 31 December
Fiscal year
–
Accounting
4.
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
–
SADR was proclaimed by the Polisario Front on February 27,1976, in Bir Lehlou, Western Sahara, a former communist liberation force which has since reformed its ideological and political views. The SADR government controls about 20–25% of the territory it claims and it calls the territories under its control the Liberated Territories or the Free Zone. Morocco controls and administers the rest of the territory and calls these lands its Southern Provinces. The SADR government considers the Moroccan-held territory to be occupied territory, the claimed capital of the SADR is El-Aaiún, while the temporary capital has been moved from Bir Lehlou to Tifariti. The Sahrawi Republic maintains diplomatic relations with 40 UN states, and is a member of the African Union. On 26 February 1976, Spain informed the United Nations that as of date it had terminated its presence in Western Sahara and relinquished its responsibilities. Neither Morocco nor Mauritania gained international recognition, and war ensued with the independence-seeking Polisario Front, on February 27,2008, the provisional capital was formally moved to Tifariti. Day-to-day business, however, is conducted in the Tindouf refugee camps in Algeria, the broad guidelines laid down for an eventual Western Saharan state in the constitution include eventual multi-party democracy with a market economy. The constitution also defines Sahrawis as a Muslim, African and Arab people, the Constitution also declares a commitment to the principles of human rights and to the concept of a Greater Maghreb, as a regional variant of Pan-Arabism. The SADRs government structure consists of a Council of Ministers, a judicial branch, since its inception in 1976, the various constitutional revisions have transformed the republic from an ad hoc managerial structure into something approaching an actual governing apparatus. Its various ministries are responsible for a variety of services and functions, the judiciary, complete with trial courts, appeals courts and a supreme court, operates in the same areas. As a government-in-exile, many branches of government do not fully function, among other things, it has added a ban on the death penalty to the constitution, and brought down the government in 1999 through a vote of no-confidence. The composition of the Sahrawi National Council is as follows, The SADR acted as a government administration in the Sahrawi refugee camps located in the Tindouf Province of western Algeria. The government of the SADR claims sovereignty over all of the Western Sahara territory, several foreign aid agencies, including the UN High Commission for Refugees, and nongovernmental organizations are continually active in the camps. As of 2016, the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic has been recognized by 85 states, of these,37 have since frozen or withdrawn recognition for a number of reasons. A total of 40 UN states maintain diplomatic relations with the SADR, Sahrawi embassies exist in 18 states. Although it is not recognised by the United Nations, the SADR has held membership of the African Union since 1982. The SADR participates as guest on meetings of the Non-Aligned Movement or the New Asian–African Strategic Partnership, on the other hand, Moroccos claim to Western Sahara is supported by the Arab League
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
–
Commemoration of the 30th independence day in
Tifariti,
Liberated Territories,
Western Sahara
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
–
Flag
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
–
A
mosque in
Dakhla.
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
–
The Spanish actress
Verónica Forqué at the
Sahara Film Festival.
5.
African Economic Community
–
The African Economic Community is an organization of African Union states establishing grounds for mutual economic development among the majority of African states. The stated goals of the include the creation of free trade areas, customs unions, a single market, a central bank. Currently there are multiple regional blocs in Africa, also known as Regional Economic Communities, the RECs consist primarily of trade blocs and, in some cases, some political and military cooperation. Most of these RECs form the pillars of AEC, many of which also have an overlap in some of their member states. Due to this proportion of overlap it is likely that some states with several memberships will eventually drop out of one or more RECs. GAFTA. Somalia is participating, but no practical implementation yet, stage 2, Steady progress, nothing factual to check. In May 2012 the idea was extended to also include ECOWAS, ECCAS, African Economic Outlook Economy of Africa Economy of the African Union A single African currency in our time. African leaders agree to form single market African Union Official Website South African webpage on RECs Pan-African Perspective
African Economic Community
–
members of AEC pillar
blocs
6.
Gross domestic product
–
Gross Domestic Product is a monetary measure of the market value of all final goods and services produced in a period. Nominal GDP estimates are used to determine the economic performance of a whole country or region. The OECD defines GDP as a measure of production equal to the sum of the gross values added of all resident and institutional units engaged in production. ”An IMF publication states that GDP measures the monetary value of final goods and services - that is. Total GDP can also be broken down into the contribution of industry or sector of the economy. The ratio of GDP to the population of the region is the per capita GDP. William Petty came up with a concept of GDP to defend landlords against unfair taxation during warfare between the Dutch and the English between 1652 and 1674. Charles Davenant developed the method further in 1695, the modern concept of GDP was first developed by Simon Kuznets for a US Congress report in 1934. In this report, Kuznets warned against its use as a measure of welfare, after the Bretton Woods conference in 1944, GDP became the main tool for measuring a countrys economy. The switch from GNP to GDP in the US was in 1991, the history of the concept of GDP should be distinguished from the history of changes in ways of estimating it. The value added by firms is relatively easy to calculate from their accounts, but the value added by the sector, by financial industries. GDP can be determined in three ways, all of which should, in principle, give the same result and they are the production approach, the income approach, or the expenditure approach. The most direct of the three is the approach, which sums the outputs of every class of enterprise to arrive at the total. The income approach works on the principle that the incomes of the factors must be equal to the value of their product. This approach mirrors the OECD definition given above, deduct intermediate consumption from gross value to obtain the gross value added. Gross value added = gross value of output – value of intermediate consumption, value of output = value of the total sales of goods and services plus value of changes in the inventories. The sum of the value added in the various economic activities is known as GDP at factor cost. GDP at factor cost plus indirect taxes less subsidies on products = GDP at producer price, for measuring output of domestic product, economic activities are classified into various sectors. Subtracting each sectors intermediate consumption from gross output gives the GDP at factor cost, adding indirect tax minus subsidies in GDP at factor cost gives the GDP at producer prices
Gross domestic product
–
Selection of GDP PPP data (top 10 countries and blocks) in no particular order
7.
Agriculture
–
Agriculture is the cultivation and breeding of animals, plants and fungi for food, fiber, biofuel, medicinal plants and other products used to sustain and enhance human life. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of human civilization. The study of agriculture is known as agricultural science, the history of agriculture dates back thousands of years, and its development has been driven and defined by greatly different climates, cultures, and technologies. Industrial agriculture based on large-scale monoculture farming has become the dominant agricultural methodology, genetically modified organisms are an increasing component of agriculture, although they are banned in several countries. Agricultural food production and water management are increasingly becoming global issues that are fostering debate on a number of fronts, the major agricultural products can be broadly grouped into foods, fibers, fuels, and raw materials. Specific foods include cereals, vegetables, fruits, oils, meats, fibers include cotton, wool, hemp, silk and flax. Raw materials include lumber and bamboo, other useful materials are also produced by plants, such as resins, dyes, drugs, perfumes, biofuels and ornamental products such as cut flowers and nursery plants. The word agriculture is a late Middle English adaptation of Latin agricultūra, from ager, field, Agriculture usually refers to human activities, although it is also observed in certain species of ant, termite and ambrosia beetle. To practice agriculture means to use resources to produce commodities which maintain life, including food, fiber, forest products, horticultural crops. This definition includes arable farming or agronomy, and horticulture, all terms for the growing of plants, even then, it is acknowledged that there is a large amount of knowledge transfer and overlap between silviculture and agriculture. In traditional farming, the two are often combined even on small landholdings, leading to the term agroforestry, Agriculture began independently in different parts of the globe, and included a diverse range of taxa. At least 11 separate regions of the Old and New World were involved as independent centers of origin, wild grains were collected and eaten from at least 105,000 years ago. Pigs were domesticated in Mesopotamia around 15,000 years ago, rice was domesticated in China between 13,500 and 8,200 years ago, followed by mung, soy and azuki beans. Sheep were domesticated in Mesopotamia between 13,000 and 11,000 years ago. From around 11,500 years ago, the eight Neolithic founder crops, emmer and einkorn wheat, hulled barley, peas, lentils, bitter vetch, chick peas and flax were cultivated in the Levant. Cattle were domesticated from the aurochs in the areas of modern Turkey. In the Andes of South America, the potato was domesticated between 10,000 and 7,000 years ago, along with beans, coca, llamas, alpacas, sugarcane and some root vegetables were domesticated in New Guinea around 9,000 years ago. Sorghum was domesticated in the Sahel region of Africa by 7,000 years ago, cotton was domesticated in Peru by 5,600 years ago, and was independently domesticated in Eurasia at an unknown time
Agriculture
–
Agriculture
Agriculture
–
Fields in
Záhorie (
Slovakia) - a typical Central European agricultural region.
Agriculture
–
Domestic sheep and a
cow (heifer) pastured together in
South Africa.
Agriculture
–
A
Sumerian harvester's sickle made from baked clay (ca. 3000 BC).
8.
Service (economics)
–
In economics, a service is a transaction in which no physical goods is transferred from the seller to the buyer. The benefits of such a service are held to be demonstrated by the willingness to make the exchange. Public services are those that society as a whole pays for, using resources, skill, ingenuity, and experience, service providers benefit service consumers. Services can be described in terms of their key characteristics, sometimes called the Five Is of Services and they are not manufactured, transported or stocked. Services cannot be stored for a future use and they are produced and consumed simultaneously. Services are perishable in two regards, Service-relevant resources, processes and systems are assigned for delivery during a specific period in time. If the service consumer does not request and consume the service during this period, from the perspective of the service provider, this is a lost business opportunity if no other use for those resources is available. Examples, A hairdresser serves another client, an empty seat on an airplane cannot be filled after departure. When the service has been rendered to the consumer, this particular service irreversibly vanishes. Example, a passenger has been transported to the destination and the flight is over, the service provider must deliver the service at the time of service consumption. The service is not manifested in an object that is independent of the provider. The service consumer is also inseparable from service delivery, examples, The service consumer must sit in the hairdressers chair, or in the airplane seat. Correspondingly, the hairdresser or the pilot must be in the shop or plane, respectively, many services are regarded as heterogeneous and are typically modified for each service consumer or each service context. Another and more common term for this is heterogeneity, both service provider and service consumer participate in the service provision. Mass generation and delivery of services must be mastered for a provider to expand. This can be seen as a problem of service quality, both inputs and outputs to the processes involved providing services are highly variable, as are the relationships between these processes, making it difficult to maintain consistent service quality. Many services involve variable human activity, rather than a precisely determined process, the human factor is often the key success factor in service provision. Demand can vary by season, time of day, business cycle, consistency is necessary to create enduring business relationships
Service (economics)
–
A
bellhop is an example of a service occupation.
9.
Fishing
–
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild, techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping. Fishing may include catching aquatic animals other than fish, such as molluscs, cephalopods, crustaceans, the term is not normally applied to catching farmed fish, or to aquatic mammals, such as whales where the term whaling is more appropriate. According to United Nations FAO statistics, the number of commercial fishermen. Fisheries and aquaculture provide direct and indirect employment to over 500 million people in developing countries, in 2005, the worldwide per capita consumption of fish captured from wild fisheries was 14.4 kilograms, with an additional 7.4 kilograms harvested from fish farms. In addition to providing food, modern fishing is also a recreational pastime, Fishing is an ancient practice that dates back to at least the beginning of the Upper Paleolithic period about 40,000 years ago. Isotopic analysis of the remains of Tianyuan man, a 40. Archaeology features such as middens, discarded fish bones, and cave paintings show that sea foods were important for survival. During this period, most people lived a lifestyle and were, of necessity. However, where there are examples of permanent settlements such as those at Lepenski Vir. The British dogger was a type of sailing trawler from the 17th century. The Brixham trawler that evolved there was of a build and had a tall gaff rig. They were also sufficiently robust to be able to tow large trawls in deep water, the great trawling fleet that built up at Brixham, earned the village the title of Mother of Deep-Sea Fisheries. The small village of Grimsby grew to become the largest fishing port in the world by the mid 19th century, an Act of Parliament was first obtained in 1796, which authorised the construction of new quays and dredging of the Haven to make it deeper. It was only in the 1846, with the expansion in the fishing industry. The foundation stone for the Royal Dock was laid by Albert the Prince consort in 1849, the dock covered 25 acres and was formally opened by Queen Victoria in 1854 as the first modern fishing port. The elegant Brixham trawler spread across the world, influencing fishing fleets everywhere, by the end of the 19th century, there were over 3,000 fishing trawlers in commission in Britain, with almost 1,000 at Grimsby. These trawlers were sold to fishermen around Europe, including from the Netherlands, twelve trawlers went on to form the nucleus of the German fishing fleet
Fishing
–
Stilts fishermen, Sri Lanka
Fishing
–
Fishing with nets, Mexico
Fishing
–
Stone Age
fish hook made from bone
Fishing
–
Painting of A Brixham trawler by
William Adolphus Knell. The painting is now in the
National Maritime Museum.
10.
List of countries by public debt
–
This is a list of countries by public debt to GDP ratio as listed by Eurostat for the EU and by CIAs World Factbook 2012 for the rest of the world. It is the total of all government borrowings less repayments that are denominated in a countrys home currency. Gross government debt is the most relevant data for discussions of government default and it is different from external debt, which includes the foreign currency liabilities of non-government entities. The figures here are represented as a percentage of gross domestic product. The public debt relative information provided by national sources is not always objective and true, note that net debt figures are included where gross debt figures are unavailable in the CIA set
List of countries by public debt
–
Total (gross) government debt as a percent of
GDP by IMF (2012)
List of countries by public debt
–
Public debt as a percent of
GDP by CIA (2012)
11.
United States dollar
–
The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States and its insular territories per the United States Constitution. It is divided into 100 smaller cent units, the circulating paper money consists of Federal Reserve Notes that are denominated in United States dollars. The U. S. dollar was originally commodity money of silver as enacted by the Coinage Act of 1792 which determined the dollar to be 371 4/16 grain pure or 416 grain standard silver, the currency most used in international transactions, it is the worlds primary reserve currency. Several countries use it as their currency, and in many others it is the de facto currency. Besides the United States, it is used as the sole currency in two British Overseas Territories in the Caribbean, the British Virgin Islands and Turks and Caicos Islands. A few countries use the Federal Reserve Notes for paper money, while the country mints its own coins, or also accepts U. S. coins that can be used as payment in U. S. dollars. After Nixon shock of 1971, USD became fiat currency, Article I, Section 8 of the U. S. Constitution provides that the Congress has the power To coin money, laws implementing this power are currently codified at 31 U. S. C. Section 5112 prescribes the forms in which the United States dollars should be issued and these coins are both designated in Section 5112 as legal tender in payment of debts. The Sacagawea dollar is one example of the copper alloy dollar, the pure silver dollar is known as the American Silver Eagle. Section 5112 also provides for the minting and issuance of other coins and these other coins are more fully described in Coins of the United States dollar. The Constitution provides that a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and that provision of the Constitution is made specific by Section 331 of Title 31 of the United States Code. The sums of money reported in the Statements are currently being expressed in U. S. dollars, the U. S. dollar may therefore be described as the unit of account of the United States. The word dollar is one of the words in the first paragraph of Section 9 of Article I of the Constitution, there, dollars is a reference to the Spanish milled dollar, a coin that had a monetary value of 8 Spanish units of currency, or reales. In 1792 the U. S. Congress passed a Coinage Act, Section 20 of the act provided, That the money of account of the United States shall be expressed in dollars, or units. And that all accounts in the offices and all proceedings in the courts of the United States shall be kept and had in conformity to this regulation. In other words, this act designated the United States dollar as the unit of currency of the United States, unlike the Spanish milled dollar the U. S. dollar is based upon a decimal system of values. Both one-dollar coins and notes are produced today, although the form is significantly more common
United States dollar
–
Series of 1917
$1 United States bill
United States dollar
–
Federal Reserve Notes
United States dollar
–
Spanish silver real or
peso of 1768
United States dollar
–
Obverse of rare 1934 $500 Federal Reserve Note, featuring a portrait of President
William McKinley.
12.
Morocco
–
Morocco, officially known as the Kingdom of Morocco, is a sovereign country located in the Maghreb region of North Africa. Geographically, Morocco is characterized by a mountainous interior, large tracts of desert. Morocco has a population of over 33.8 million and an area of 446,550 km2 and its capital is Rabat, and the largest city is Casablanca. Other major cities include Marrakesh, Tangier, Tetouan, Salé, Fes, Agadir, Meknes, Oujda, Kenitra, a historically prominent regional power, Morocco has a history of independence not shared by its neighbours. Marinid and Saadi dynasties continued the struggle against foreign domination, the Alaouite dynasty, the current ruling dynasty, seized power in 1666. In 1912 Morocco was divided into French and Spanish protectorates, with a zone in Tangier. Moroccan culture is a blend of Arab, indigenous Berber, Sub-Saharan African, Morocco claims the non-self-governing territory of Western Sahara as its Southern Provinces. Morocco annexed the territory in 1975, leading to a war with indigenous forces until a cease-fire in 1991. Peace processes have thus far failed to break the political deadlock, Morocco is a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament. The King of Morocco holds vast executive and legislative powers, especially over the military, foreign policy, the king can issue decrees called dahirs which have the force of law. He can also dissolve the parliament after consulting the Prime Minister, Moroccos predominant religion is Islam, and the official languages are Arabic and Tamazight. The Moroccan dialect, referred to as Darija, and French are also widely spoken, Morocco is a member of the Arab League, the Union for the Mediterranean, and the African Union. It has the fifth largest economy of Africa, the full Arabic name al-Mamlakah al-Maghribiyyah translates to Kingdom of the West, although the West in Arabic is الغرب Al-Gharb. The basis of Moroccos English name is Marrakesh, its capital under the Almoravid dynasty, the origin of the name Marrakesh is disputed, but is most likely from the Berber words amur akush or Land of God. The modern Berber name for Marrakesh is Mṛṛakc, in Turkish, Morocco is known as Fas, a name derived from its ancient capital of Fes. The English name Morocco is an anglicisation of the Spanish Marruecos, the area of present-day Morocco has been inhabited since Paleolithic times, sometime between 190,000 and 90,000 BC. During the Upper Paleolithic, the Maghreb was more fertile than it is today, twenty-two thousand years ago, the Aterian was succeeded by the Iberomaurusian culture, which shared similarities with Iberian cultures. Skeletal similarities have been suggested between the Iberomaurusian Mechta-Afalou burials and European Cro-Magnon remains, the Iberomaurusian was succeeded by the Beaker culture in Morocco
Morocco
–
Berber Roman King
Ptolemy of Mauretania.
Morocco
–
Flag
Morocco
–
Roman mosaic of Diana in
Volubilis.
Morocco
–
Morocco, Safi ceramic vessel Jobbana
13.
Politics of Morocco
–
Politics of Morocco take place in a framework of a parliamentary constitutional monarchy, whereby the Prime Minister of Morocco is the head of government, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government, legislative power is vested in both the government and the two chambers of parliament, the Assembly of Representatives of Morocco and the Assembly of Councillors. The Moroccan Constitution provides for a monarchy with a Parliament and an independent judiciary, on June 17,2011 King Mohamed VI announced a series of reforms that would transform Morocco into a constitutional monarchy. The constitution grants the king extensive powers, he is both the political leader and the Commander of the Faithful as a direct descendant of the Prophet Mohammed. He presides over the Council of Ministers, appoints the Prime Minister following legislative elections, the King is formally the chief of the military. Upon the death of his father Mohammed V, King Hassan II succeeded to the throne in 1961 and he ruled Morocco for the next 38 years, until he died in 1999. His son, King Mohammed VI, assumed the throne in July 1999, following the March 1998 elections, a coalition government headed by opposition socialist hi Abderrahmane Youssoufi and composed largely of ministers drawn from opposition parties, was formed. It was also the first time in the political history of the Arab world that the opposition assumed power following an election. The current government is headed by Saadeddine Othmani, since the constitutional reform of 1996, the bicameral legislature consists of two chambers. The Assembly of Representatives of Morocco has 325 members elected for a term,295 elected in multi-seat constituencies and 30 in national lists consisting only of women. The Assembly of Councillors has 270 members, elected for a term, elected by local councils. The lower chamber of Parliament may dissolve the government through a vote of no confidence, on November 26,2011 initial results of parliamentary elections were released. The moderate Islamist party, the Justice and Development Party, was projected to win the largest number of seats, however, the electoral rules were structured such that no political party could ever win more than 20 percent of the seats in the parliament. Abdelillah Benkirane was reappointed Prime Minister by the King on 10 October, the Authenticity and Modernity Party won 102 seats, and the rest of the seats were split among smaller parties. The highest court in the structure is the Supreme Court. The Youssoufi government continued to implement a program to develop greater judicial independence. Morocco is divided into 16 administrative regions, the regions are administered by the Walis, Morocco is divided also into 13 prefectures and 62 provinces. Prefectures, Agadir-Ida Ou Tanane, Casablanca, Fès, Inezgane-Aït Melloul, Marrakesh, Meknès, Mohammedia, Oujda-Angad, Rabat, Safi, Salé, Skhirate-Témara and Tangier-Assilah
Politics of Morocco
–
The legislature's building, in
Rabat.
14.
Constitution of Morocco
–
The first Constitution of Morocco was adopted in 1962,6 years after the country regained independence. Since this event, the king, Mohamed V worked for the establishment of political and constitutional institutions. This was originally the creation of the National Advisory Council and, on November 15,1959, a referendum on constitutional reforms was held in Morocco on 1 July 2011. It was called in response to the protests took place earlier in the year demanding democratic reforms. A commission was to draft proposals by June 2011. 49% of voters, despite protest movements calling for a boycott of the referendum, government officials claimed turnout was 72. 65%. Following the referendum, early elections were then held on 25 November 2011. Archived from the original on 2013-11-02
Constitution of Morocco
–
Morocco
15.
Human rights in Morocco
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Morocco’s human rights record is mixed. There has been a degree of modernisation, and more rights have been granted to the population in general. This article deals with Morocco and not the disputed Western Sahara, see Human rights in Western Sahara in that regard. Morocco administers 80% of the territory, hence Moroccan law applies to its Southern Provinces, Freedom of the press is quasi-absent and many journalists are thought to practice self-censorship. Questioning the legitimacy of the monarchy or the actions of the King is a taboo, as of 2007 Lmrabet is still barred from working as a journalist. Many online journalists were sentenced to prison to criticizing the King or denouncing rampant corruption by King-appointed governors, in the report, Morocco was considered, along with Tunisia, as the country which sentences the most journalists to prison in the Arab world. According to the 2013 Press Freedom Index, Reporters Without Borders has ranked Morocco 136 out of 179, as of the 2015 Index, the same organization had placed Morocco at 130 out of 180 countries. According to Human Rights Watch annual report 2016, Moroccan authorities restricted the rights to expression, association. The authorities continue to print and online media when they criticize the government. In addition, authorities imposed administrative obstacles to restrict journalists work, in Rabat, the police expelled two French journalists and confiscated their tapes claiming that they have no filming authorization. The report said that Moroccan official television allows some space for debate, however, such debate does not tackle significant issues. Government repression of political dissent has dropped sharply since the mid-1990s, the previous decades are sometimes described as the Years of Lead, and included forced disappearances, killings of government opponents and secret internment camps such as Tazmamart. This has been hailed internationally as a big step forward, the secret report has been leaked and can be found at for example ARSO. org. Later the same year, in October, Morocco stopped a planned, the decision came less than 48 hours before the delegation was to leave for Rabat and Western Sahara. The mission was to study alleged human rights violations from both Polisario and the Moroccan authorities, Morocco claimed that the majority of the members of the delegation were known supporters of the Polisario front, and thus the neutrality of the delegation was not assured. Freedom of religion is observed, with some limitations. It is illegal to proselytise for religions other than Islam, political activities under the rubric of Islam are also restricted by the state. There still exists a Moroccan Jewish community, although most Jews emigrated in the following the creation of Israel in 1948
Human rights in Morocco
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Morocco
16.
List of rulers of Morocco
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This is the list of rulers of Morocco, since the establishment of the first Moroccan state in 789. The common and formal titles of these rulers has varied, depending on the time period, since 1957, the designation King has been used. Hassan I al-Hajam The second period of Fatimid overlordship lasted from 927 to 937, al Qasim Gannum Abu l-Aish Ahmad Al-Hasan ben Kannun In 974, the Sultan Al-Hasan ben Kannun was defeated by Cordobese Umayyads. A period of Umayyad overlordship followed then, as Said Abu Salim Ali II. Abu Umar Taschufin Abu Zayyan Muhammad III, Abu l-Abbas Ahmad Musa ibn Faris Al-Wathiq Abu l-Abbas Ahmad Abu Faris Abdul Aziz II
List of rulers of Morocco
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King of Morocco
List of rulers of Morocco
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Coat of arms of Morocco
List of rulers of Morocco
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Al-Rashid
List of rulers of Morocco
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Ismail Ibn Sharif
17.
Mohammed VI of Morocco
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Mohammed VI is the King of Morocco. He ascended to the throne on 23 July 1999 upon the death of his father, Mohammed was the second child and oldest son of Hassan II and his second wife, Lalla Latifa Hammou. On the day of his birth, Mohammed was appointed Heir Apparent and his father was keen on giving him a religious and political education from an early age— at the age of four, he started attending the Quranic school at the Royal Palace. Mohammed completed his primary and secondary studies at Royal College and attained his Baccalaureate in 1981 and his research paper dealt with the Arab-African Union and the Strategy of the Kingdom of Morocco in matters of International Relations. He has also frequented the Imperial College and University of Rabat and he was furthermore appointed President of the Pan Arab Games, and was commissioned a Colonel Major of the Royal Moroccan Army on 26 November 1985. He served as the Coordinator of the Offices and Services of the Royal Armed Forces until 1994, in 1987, Mohammed obtained his first Certificat dÉtudes Supérieures in political sciences, and in July 1988 he obtained a Diplôme dÉtudes Approfondies in public law. In November 1988, he trained in Brussels with Jacques Delors, Mohammed obtained his PhD in law with distinction on 29 October 1993 from the French University of Nice Sophia Antipolis for his thesis on EEC-Maghreb Relations. On 12 July 1994, he was promoted to the rank of Major General. He speaks Arabic, English, Spanish and French, on 23 July 1999, Mohammed succeeded his father as king, being enthroned in Rabat on 30 July. Shortly after he took the throne, Mohammed VI addressed his nation via television, promising to take on poverty and corruption, while creating jobs, mohammeds reformist rhetoric was opposed by Islamist conservatives, and some of his reforms angered fundamentalists. In February 2004, he enacted a new code, or Mudawana. Mohammed also created the so-called Instance Equité et Réconciliation, which was tasked with researching human rights violations under Hassan II and this move was welcomed by many as promoting democracy, but was also criticized because reports of human rights violations could not name the perpetrators. According to human rights organisations, widespread abuses still exist in Morocco, the 2011 Moroccan protests were motivated by corruption and general political discontentment, as well as by the hardships of the global economic crisis. In December 2010, the whistleblowing website WikiLeaks published diplomatic cables which alleged high-level corruption involving the King himself, in a speech delivered on 9 March 2011, the King said that parliament would receive new powers that enable it to discharge its representative, legislative, and regulatory mission. On 1 July, voters approved a set of reforms proposed by Mohammed. The reforms consisted of the following, The Berber language is a state language along with Arabic. Previously, the king could nominate anybody he wanted for this position regardless of the election results and that was usually the case when no party had a big advantage over the other parties, in terms of the number of seats in the parliament. The prime minister is the head of government and president of the council of government, the prime minister will preside over the Council of Government, which prepares the general policy of the state
Mohammed VI of Morocco
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Mohammed VI محمد السادس ⵎⵓⵃⵎⵎⴷ ⵡⵉⵙ ⵚⴹⵉⵚ
Mohammed VI of Morocco
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Mohammed VI (right) talking to
US President George W. Bush in
Washington on 23 April 2002.
Mohammed VI of Morocco
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Mohammed VI in 2004.
Mohammed VI of Morocco
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Mohammed VI (left) with
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in 2004.
18.
Makhzen
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The term Makhzen is also popularly used in Morocco as a word meaning State or Government. It is likely a metonymy related to taxes, which the makhzen used to collect, the term may refer to the state. Recently, the term is also being used to describe the police, the word has also been adopted into Spanish, Portuguese with a different meaning, as almacén and armazém, and into French and Italian as magasin and magazzino. It came into the English language from Middle French as magazine, originally referring to a storehouse for ammunition, with the store meaning, it was also adopted from French into Russian as ru, Магазин. In the Berber culture of Morocco, the Berber equivalent of mekhzen would be agadir, Berber tribes also considered the agadir as a powerhouse guarded and managed through a legal system. The Arabic word makhzen is probably a translation of the original Berber word agadir, the Makhzen is a very ancient notion in Morocco, it roughly coincides with the notion of the feudal state predating the French protectorate in Morocco
Makhzen
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Morocco
19.
Saadeddine Othmani
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Saadeddine Othmani is a Berber Moroccan politician and psychiatrist who was appointed as Prime Minister of Morocco on 17 March 2017 and took office on 5 April 2017. Previously he served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2012 to 2013 and he was born in 1956 in Inezgane, near Agadir, in the Souss region. He obtained a Doctorate in Medicine from Hassan II University of Casablanca in 1986 and he also earned Master and DEA degrees in Islamic studies in 1983,1987 and 1999. He has written books on psychology and Islamic law, and worked as the editor-in-chief of many magazines. In 2004, after the withdrawal from politics of Abdelkrim Alkhatib, Saadeddine Othmani became the head of the Justice and he is also a parliamentary deputy of Inezgane. Saadeddine Othmani was Minister of Foreign Affairs from 3 January 2012 to 10 October 2013 in the government headed by his party and he was succeeded as Minister of Foreign Affairs by Salaheddine Mezouar. Subsequently he headed the group of the PJD. On 17 March 2017, Saadeddine Othmani was appointed as Prime Minister by King Mohammed VI
Saadeddine Othmani
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Saadeddine Othmani in 2012
20.
Parliament of Morocco
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The Parliament of Morocco is the bicameral legislature located in Rabat, the capital of Morocco. The traditional representative system in Morocco was organized through traditional structures such as the assembly by cities and regions. These structures were not elected, but nominated through an cooptation system, from 1880, Morocco began a range of reforms to adapt its institutions to modern standards. Among these reforms the creation of the position of vizier, having a structured and durable cabinet, with six ministries, including foreign affairs, finance. In the process, the Sultan Moulay Abdelaziz decides create an assembly in 1904. It is this assembly that summoned the international conference of Algeciras, and that has drafted the constitution of 1908, the Majlis el Ayane has been dissolved in 1913, as a result of the Treaty of Fez establishing a protectorate. But since 1947, and on impulse Erik Labonne, Resident General of France in Morocco, and the Sultan Mohammed V, the protectorate creates consultative chambers reserved for Moroccans, Jews and Muslims. These elected chambers, through the elections of 1947 and 1951, were in reality only a response of the protectorate system to the nationalists claims expressed en 1944 manifesto of independence. The Istiqlal who accept to participate in the 1947 elections, earning three elected representatives, eventually boycott the 1951 elections, the first chamber was chaired by Mehdi Ben Barka. The first Moroccan Constitution adopted in 1963 created a bicameral parliament consisting of the House of Representatives, the 1970 Constitution abandon bicameralism and opts for a single room. The 1992 Constitution allows elected to committees of inquiries. Under the state of emergency, the Head of State may dissolve Parliament, however, constitutions adopted after that date contained many restrictions of public freedoms, close to the state of emergency. Until 1977, no elected parliament has completed its term, since 1996, the national legislature has become bicameral and has therefore two parliamentary chambers, The House of Representatives or the lower house. 395 members elected directly for a five-year term, the House of Councillorss 270 members are elected indirectly for a six-year term by two sets of electoral colleges. The Members of Parliament come from Morocco and the Moroccan-held parts of Western Sahara, part of the reserve powers, the head of State has the right to dissolve the Parliament. In the past, during the years of lead under King Hassan II, thus, until 1997, not a single elected Parliament was able to complete its term under normal circumstances. The role of Parliament, and the respect of the monarchy for its integrity, has increased considerably since 1999, when Mohammed VI took the throne. However, the power of Parliament is still being limited as it is the King who appoints the prime minister and on proposition from the latter, politics of Morocco Elections in Morocco List of political parties in Morocco List of legislatures by country Official website
Parliament of Morocco
Parliament of Morocco
21.
Administrative divisions of Morocco
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In Morocco, the 75 second-level administrative subdivisions are 13 prefectures and 62 provinces. They are subdivisions of the 12 regions of Morocco, each prefecture or province is subdivided into arrondissements, municipalities or urban municipalities in other urban areas, and districts in rural areas. The districts are subdivided into rural municipalities, one prefecture is also subdivided into préfectures darrondissements, similar to districts except they are grouping a few arrondissements instead of rural municipalities. Note, The arrondissements and municipalities should probably be thought of as fourth-level subdivisions, on the level as the rural municipalities. The remaining native Western Saharan population now lives as a minority among the new Moroccan occupants, therefore, strictly speaking, the level of wilayas are between the regions and prefectures/provinces. However, they are often used synonymous with regions or prefectures/provinces in common usage, Regions of Morocco List of administrative divisions of Morocco by population List of administrative divisions of Morocco by area ISO 3166-2, MA ISO Administrative divisions Regions of Morocco
Administrative divisions of Morocco
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Moroccan administrative division
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Regions of Morocco
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Regions are currently the highest administrative divisions in Morocco. Since 2015 Morocco officially administers 12 regions, including one that lies completely within the territory of Western Sahara. The regions are subdivided into a total of 75 second-order administrative divisions, a region is governed by a directly elected regional council. The president of the council is responsible for carrying out the councils decisions, the commission published provisional names and numbers for the new regions, and their names were officially fixed in the Bulletin Officiel dated 5 March 2015. The new regional councils elected their presidents on 14 September 2015, a. ^ Lies partially or completely within the disputed territory of Western Sahara. Between 1997 and 2010, Morocco had 16 regions, the entirety of Oued Ed-Dahab-Lagouira, the vast majority of Laâyoune-Boujdour-Sakia El Hamra, and part of Guelmim-Es Semara were situated within the disputed territory of Western Sahara. The sovereignty of Western Sahara is disputed between Morocco and the Polisario Front which claims the territory as the independent Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, most of the region is administered by Morocco as its Southern Provinces. The Polisario Front, based in headquarters at Tindouf in south western Algeria, before 1997, Morocco was divided into 7 regions, Central, Eastern, North-Central, Northwestern, South-Central, Southern, Tansift. Administrative divisions of Morocco Administrative divisions of Morocco ISO 3166-2, MA ISO 3166-2, EH
Regions of Morocco
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Regions of Morocco جهات المغرب (
Arabic) Tasgiwin n Murakuc (
Berber)
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Provinces of Morocco
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In Morocco, the 75 second-level administrative subdivisions are 13 prefectures and 62 provinces. They are subdivisions of the 12 regions of Morocco, each prefecture or province is subdivided into arrondissements, municipalities or urban municipalities in other urban areas, and districts in rural areas. The districts are subdivided into rural municipalities, one prefecture is also subdivided into préfectures darrondissements, similar to districts except they are grouping a few arrondissements instead of rural municipalities. Note, The arrondissements and municipalities should probably be thought of as fourth-level subdivisions, on the level as the rural municipalities. The remaining native Western Saharan population now lives as a minority among the new Moroccan occupants, therefore, strictly speaking, the level of wilayas are between the regions and prefectures/provinces. However, they are often used synonymous with regions or prefectures/provinces in common usage, Regions of Morocco List of administrative divisions of Morocco by population List of administrative divisions of Morocco by area ISO 3166-2, MA ISO Administrative divisions Regions of Morocco
Provinces of Morocco
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Morocco
24.
Elections in Morocco
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Elections in Morocco are held on a national level for the legislature. The Assembly of Representatives of Morocco has 325 members elected for a term,295 elected in multi-seat constituencies and 30 in national lists consisting only of women. The Assembly of Councillors has 270 members, elected for a term, elected by local councils. Since Morocco considers Western Sahara as part of its territory and administers large parts of it, on October 2006, as many as 67 people were arrested for election fraud allegations related to the September 8,2006 polls. Among them there were 17 lawmakers and it was the first time the Moroccan government made such arrests. Source, Elections in Western Sahara Electoral calendar Electoral system Adam Carrs Election Archive
Elections in Morocco
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Morocco
