Lower House Opens 2nd Session of the 2023-2024 Legislative Year

The House of Representatives opened the second session of the 2023-2024 legislative year on Friday, with a focus on an extensive regulatory, legislative, and control agenda. The session started with the election of the Speaker of the House of Representatives for the remainder of the parliamentary term (2021-2026), as per the House’s rules of procedure. According to Article 62 of the Constitution, the President is elected at the start of the legislature, then in the 3rd year, during the April session, and serves for the remainder of the term. Rachid Talbi Alami (representing the parliamentary majority) and Abdellah Bouanou, Chairman of the parliamentary group of the Justice and Development Party, are the candidates for the position of the Lower House Speaker for the remainder of this term. Additionally, this session will witness the renewal of the structures of the Lower House. The session holds particular significance as it involves the vital task of monitoring and evaluating government performance before parliament, as outlined in Article 101 of the Constitution. This represents an exceptional political and constitutional moment, showcasing the maturity of Moroccan parliamentary practice and the constructive interaction between the executive and legislative branches. It is also an opportunity to inform national public opinion of the government’s achievements and the extent to which the commitments contained in the government programme have been met, as a contractual basis with citizens. As far as legislation is concerned, the April parliamentary session will be dealing with priority texts that will undoubtedly be the subject of wide-ranging debate in society, in particular the reform of the Family Code, laws relating to the judicial system and the draft organic law determining the conditions and procedures for exercising the right to strike.