Moroccan Youth Shadow Government

7/31/2019 Moroccan Youth Shadow Government

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Moroccan Youth Shadow Government:

When Moroccan youth innovate their spring and show

the way forward

Mohamed Amine Belarbi

A publication of The Arab Institute for Youth

Policy Making



The ink spilled on describing and speculating on the motives, outcomes and long term impacts of the

Arab spring has dwarfed any past attempt to analyze and dissect a historical occurrence. It is with no

doubt a true turnout in world history, and approaching the subject with care and humility is a necessity

given the political and historical weight of the event.

Arab societies have adopted the bad habit of alienating its youth from politics and decision making, aprivilege commonly accepted to belong to a closed circle of contacts and networks who inherits state

posts and ministerial mandates over the years. This exclusionist culture fueled by repressive regimes

has been shattered if not pulled down by the strong urge of the public opinion to lay down new

grounds for new efforts of nation building. The forefront of the grassroots movements who led the

reformative uprising has been a strong coalition of youth-led groups and young activists who accepted

nothing but a reconsideration of the totalitarian dictates which set them on the sideline for decades, yet

after staunch efforts, sacrifices and human losses, all what could be accomplished was a regime

destruction and no youth-led alternative has been put forward. Changing regimes can sometimes be

constrained to switching names, and the figures thrown away are usually taking their positions back

under new titles and revolutionary derivatives.

Leading a revolution or an evolution can only be qualified of successful if it is entertained from start to

end, and instating a new political establishment ought to see the participation of the generation Y as a

key feature and attribute.

In this article I shed light on a unique Moroccan experience which summarizes what ought to be

pursued by the Arab youth in their advocacy and activism towards greater participation and

representation in state management and public policies.

Moroccan Youth Shadow Government

Chants mounted throughout the streets of Morocco calling for reforms, an end with corruption andgenuine efforts to empower the civil society which had long been marketed in media campaigns and

state reports to enlighten the democratic aspirations of the kingdom, yet these aspirations remained ink

on paper and never materialized concretely. Days afterwards, tensions became past stories and all what

could be heard were eulogies of the new constitutional reforms championed by the King. Seeing the

eagerness and motivation of the 20th February movement in advancing a clear reformative agenda

which clearly shook the nations’ political elite, it becomes necessary to ponder the power and

prospects of the Moroccan youth in bringing about a change when it proves to be realistic to process

reforms considered unattainable weeks before. With a real potential and available man power, one can

easily salivate on the prospects of witnessing a new stage in youth engagement in shaping domestic

politics and social paradigms.

It is important to re-engage the Moroccan youth in the political life and seeing young figures in key

state posts and under the parliament cupola should cease to remain a dream and start to materialize

through the aspirations, actions and leverage of the youth activists. A youth-led movement who can

topple regimes and tear down dictatorships can easily accomplish equally in the domain of politics if

oriented and organized, and this is what we’re witnessing with the emergence of a new political

experience in Morocco: The youth shadow government!

The Moroccan youth shadow government, as described by its members is a non-governmental body,

whose youth components drawn from civil society are crowned with ministerial posts equivalent to

those of the actual government. As every youth shadow government, the incentive of the group is toevaluate the state performance and advance recommendations and policy projects for decision makers



in the nations’ power centers. This initiative comes at a critical historical moment both on a national,

regional and international level. The balance of power, long shifted towards the political elite with

exclusive legislative power at the detriment of the civil society, has started regaining its true balance

where both the state and the civil sector have enough constitutional leverage to induce a visible impact

on domestic affairs and policies. Whether public administration, fiscal legislations, political dictates or

social and cultural reforms, all key component of a sovereign nation’s attributes are now open forpublic scrutiny and civil evaluation. The youth shadow government in Morocco does not only

contribute towards the democratic process of inclusive politics every nation ought to implement, but

upholds a visionary agenda to empower youth involvement in decision making.

Looking back at the Moroccan chess game, one is shocked when comparing the battle plan the

political torch bearers promised the public opinion with the actual moves the Justice and Development

party is entertaining. Besides a promising “grand opening” with bold moves to hit hard on corruption,

the politicians quickly set the pace back and declared an open amnesty for all those who delighted

themselves in robbing the kingdoms’ wealth and fortune. What sets the pace for Moroccan politics

today are speculations on loyalty to the monarch constantly put at doubt in mischievous little games,

and verbal disputes between the government and the opposition, all while the state is running out of

cash and is drowning in debt. The murmurs fueling street conversations put the blame on the hidden

hands of the “courtiers” who use the palace leverage to sustain their hold on public affairs. These

closed circles that enjoy phenomenal connections and power are the wall the government could not

jump, out of fear and reverence to those who might be dragged along if the elite’s hold is to be

challenged.

Here comes the critical point of youth engagement in the political life! As described by James Traub

in Foreign Policy:

“Politics in Morocco, as elsewhere in the Arab world, has long been an elite game. The reforms that

Mohammed VI has instituted since assuming the throne in 1999 have succeeded in persuading a

significant part of the Moroccan elite, including intellectuals, that he is the key to the country's future.

But the elite game has ended: The young and the disenfranchised have stopped accepting the bleak

future that stretched before them.”1

The youth, and not the political elite which has hijacked the public uprising, are fed with a status-quo

were the bleak prospects of an upcoming future are to be accepted and not questioned. The bold

motivation of the youth, their rebellious nature and authority-defying character is a precious leverage

for political paradigm shifts in the kingdom.

This being said, the youth initiative to launch a shadow government is a welcomed step that willmotivate a true adjustment in today’s failed politics. A young minister in the youth shadow

government will not be timid as to point to the location of the defect, and will not compromise for the

sake of protecting the interests of some corrupt elite. Evaluating and closely following the activities of

the state, the YSG has finally given the Moroccan and its youth a mechanism that fosters

accountability and objectively assesses the nations’ performance outside the common political

auctions with no intrinsic value. Finally, the surge of youth and the aspirations of the young generation

will be put to effect, neither in vain appeals nor in mass protest, but in constructive policies,

recommendations, reports and projects that have the potential to drive further the quality and reach of

the Moroccan politics.

1James Traub, Foreign Policy, The Reformer in Rabat

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2012/08/10/the_reformer_in_rabat?page=0,1






From the publications already circulated and put on state officials’ desks and from the meeting I had

with one of the YSG ministers, the seriousness and significance of the work being achieved can

impress immensely, especially given the meager resources and margins the institution is allowed to

operate within.

Lobbying has long been falsely attributed to powerful organisms and individuals who advanceinterests and benefits through financial, media or political mechanisms, yet today we’re witnessing the

emergence of a new kind of lobbying establishments led by the youth for the youth. It is not taken out

from a sci-fi scene; it is a plain recreation of a reality shaping itself. Who one day would have pictured

a 20 year old student lobbying a Moroccan official to put his policy recommendation on the table of

negotiations? It is a dream that once our youth realized is achievable, started making the best out of it

not only for themselves but for a nation thriving for progress and advance.

Pushing for greater representation of Moroccan expatriates, calling for the establishment of a rating

agency for NGOs’ performance and wider accountability and audit for state grants to the civil society

are few examples of what the youth shadow government has already called for and duly

communicated to state officials. These are the true reforms that a nation aspires to, and this is a

powerful representation of the down to top reforms scheme that most thinkers advocate for as the only

way forward to induce a culture of reforms, advance and progress.

It is time to acknowledge the efforts and work of the Moroccan youth in leading their civilized

evolution towards a democratic society, and as citizens, state officials and international bodies, it is a

moral imperative to support such initiatives and expand them to the wider audiences in search for state

and social restructuration on the basis of accountability, inclusive politics and civic responsibility.

Mohamed Amine Belarbi

Co-founder and President of the Arab Institute for Youth Policy Making

[email protected]

This document is the intellectual property of both Mohamed Amine Belarbi and the Arab Institute

for Youth Policy Making. Any copy or redistribution of part or of the entire essay ought to include a

reference to both parties. This essay is referenced as a publication of the AIYPM sourcing in its

branch in Morocco, the MIYPM.

You can consult the AIYPM blog on the following address: www. aiypm.co.cc

For third parties interested in knowing more, supporting or collaborating with the Moroccan Youth

Shadow Government, contact Ismail El Hamraoui, General coordinator of the MYSG, at:

[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]



Moroccan Youth Shadow Government

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