Covid-19: More than 18,000 Moroccans Stranded Abroad (Minister)

A total of 18,226 Moroccans are stranded abroad after border closures as part of preventive measures taken to combat the spread of the new coronavirus, said minister delegate in charge of Moroccan Expatriates, Nezha El Ouafi.

 Speaking before the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defense, Islamic Affairs and Moroccan Expatriates at the House of Representatives, E Ouafi stressed that the ministry of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Expatriates ensures through its diplomatic missions and consulates to accompany the Moroccans concerned and to bear the costs of accommodation and care for some of them.

 In addition, measures have been taken with the authorities of the countries in question in order to extend the period of validity of their stay, to keep the hotels that accommodate them open, or to book hotels specifically to house them.

 According to the minister delegate, 2,743 Moroccan nationals were taken care of out of a total of 18,226 stranded abroad.

 She recalled, in this context, the initiative of HM King Mohammed VI, which led to the repatriation of 167 Moroccan students from the Chinese city of Wuhan, stressing that they benefited from health, social and psychological support during the period of their confinement in Rabat and Meknes (21 days).

Following the arrival of the epidemic in a number of European countries, the Moroccan authorities, on the instructions of HM the King, adopted a battery of operational measures, at the top of which was the temporary closure of all air, sea and land links, in coordination with the authorities of the countries concerned, she added.

 The primary objective was to anticipate the spread of the virus in Morocco and to protect the health and lives of citizens, El Ouafi said, noting that the Kingdom has made efforts to monitor the disease and mitigate its impact on the national economy.

 Since the appearance of the first cases of contamination, she added, a crisis unit has been set up at the ministry of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Expatriates to accompany Moroccans abroad after the closure of borders by several countries across the world.

The government official also highlighted the strong mobilization of all diplomatic representations and consulates in host countries, as well as the cells set up at the central and regional levels to monitor the situation of Moroccans around the world, stressing the considerable and continuous efforts made in these special circumstances.

Referring to the impossibility at the present time to repatriate the bodies of Moroccans who died abroad for burial in their homeland in view of the various measures undertaken by different countries to deal with the pandemic of the new coronavirus, El Ouafi stressed the decision to cover the burial costs of poor Moroccans who do not have funeral insurance.