Morocco, EU: Continued Commitment Against Terrorism & Violent Extremism Through Education

Morocco and the European Union (EU) on Thursday co-chaired the virtual conference launching the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF) on “Placing education at the heart of preventing and countering violent extremism conducive to terrorism efforts”.    Launched in partnership with the Center of Excellence for Countering Violent Extremism “Hedayah”, in collaboration with the GCTF Working Group on Countering Violent Extremism, this initiative is meant to identify the emerging challenges, the successes and the best approaches in preventing and countering violent extremism in the educational field, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates said in a press release.    This initiative also aims to devise concrete solutions and practical recommendations that can be used by decision-makers, educators and civil society stakeholders.    Good practices applied in Africa, including in the Sahel region, the new global epicenter of terrorism, will be examined to draw applicable lessons in countering and preventing extremism conducive to terrorism, the same source added.    The implementation of this initiative is part of the efforts aimed at implementing the framework documents and good practices developed by GCTF, in particular the “Abu Dhabi Memorandum for Good Practices on Education and Countering Violent Extremism”.    As part of this initiative, which will span over two years (2023-2025), a tailor-made training of trainers (ToT) program will be designed and delivered for educators, in order to build the resilience of learners to face violent extremism.    A toolbox as well as a series of indicators will also be developed and put in place to help and support governments’ efforts in monitoring and evaluating programs and policies on preventing and countering violent extremism in the field of education.    During its official launch, in May 2023, by Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates, Nasser Bourita, and High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security, Josep Borrell, both parties had highlighted the role of education as a powerful tool to prevent and counter radicalism and violent extremism, and eradicate extremist ideologies that thrive in precarious environments.    They had underlined that this initiative demonstrates the privileged partnership and the common commitment of Morocco and the European Union to promote peace, security and development.