Moroccan MPs seize on regions, strategic sovereignty and Spain after royal speech

Lawmakers from several parliamentary groups highlighted administrative deconcentration, strategic sovereignty and Morocco’s external partnerships as central messages from King Mohammed VI’s opening address to the new legislature on Friday.

The King said further delays in transferring powers, staff and financial resources from central government to the regions were “unacceptable,” while also calling for new strategies in water, energy and food security, industrial development, the digital economy and artificial intelligence.

Ahmed Touizi, a PAM MP who led the party’s parliamentary group during the previous legislature, said the speech placed renewed pressure on government and Parliament to implement advanced regionalization through genuine administrative deconcentration.

He argued that giving regions greater resources and decision-making capacity would help address territorial inequalities and what he described as a “two-speed Morocco.”

Touizi also pointed to the King’s call to strengthen strategic reserves covering energy, food and other essential goods, framing it as part of a wider push to reduce vulnerability in critical sectors.

RNI MP Mohamed Chouki similarly said deconcentration should give regions the human and financial means required to play a greater role in territorial development.

The speech’s section on Spain also drew attention.King Mohammed VI said Morocco’s migration partnership with Spain had produced results but that the existing cooperation model had become outdated, criticizing legal provisions and court rulings that he said obstruct returns of minors and people falsely claiming asylum. He said Morocco’s partnerships were sovereign choices and would not be subject to “pressure, threat or blackmail.”

PPS MP Rachid Hammouni focused on the speech’s emphasis on food, water, energy and pharmaceutical security, arguing that Morocco should reduce dependence on imports where possible.