Bill 59.24 on the reform of higher education and scientific research was approved by the Government Council this Thursday and is now headed for review by both Houses of Parliament. Even before lawmakers cast their votes, some provisions are already being rolled out in universities in preparation for the 2025/26 academic year. Still, several points of the reform are stirring debate among teachers and students. Meeting this Thursday, August 28, in Rabat, the Government Council reviewed and approved Bill 59.24 on the reform of higher education and scientific research, presented by the supervising minister, Azzedine El Midaoui. Drafted since 2024 and submitted to the General Secretariat of the Government, the bill falls under framework law 51.17 on the education, training, and scientific research system. At the weekly press briefing following the meeting, government spokesperson Mustapha Baitas stressed that the reform aims to «support the active role of higher education and scientific research in achieving national development priorities». It also seeks to reinforce the sector's central role in «training human capital to support the country's policies, programs, and structural projects». According to Baitas, the bill is designed to «set the direction for public policy on higher education and scientific research, as well as its overall organization, particularly in terms of governance, pedagogical design, and monitoring and evaluation mechanisms». Student organizations threaten to strike On the eve of its approval, three student groups voiced strong opposition to Bill 59.24. The National Union of Moroccan Students (UNEM), the National Commission of Medical Students (CNEM), and the National Coordination of Moroccan Engineering Students issued a joint statement announcing their intention to «write to the Ministry of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Innovation, as well as to the head of government», while warning of possible «strikes and demonstrations on the ground» at the start of the academic year. They denounced the reform as a «step backward» that undermines hard-won rights, particularly the removal of provisions allowing students to organize through associations and representative bodies. For them, this represents a «flagrant contradiction with the spirit of the Constitution and its guarantees of public freedoms». They recalled that «although enacted in 2000 under the old Constitution, Law 01.00 contained clear articles (71, 72, 73) guaranteeing students the right to organize within their institutions and manage their affairs through representative bodies. Yet the new amendments, adopted under the 2011 Constitution which explicitly recognizes freedom of expression, organization, and collective action, have eliminated these essential provisions». They also pointed out that «less than a year ago, the Ministry of Higher Education signed an official agreement with the national offices and councils of medical, dental, and pharmacy students, recognizing their legitimacy and calling on faculties to integrate them into their regulations. This was an important step toward participatory governance. Logic and fairness demand that this model be generalized to all higher education institutions, not buried». For the signatories, the bill reflects a «unilateral» approach to reform and opens the door to the privatization of public higher education, undermining, they argue, «the principle of equal opportunity». Teachers join the criticism Their position echoes earlier concerns raised by teaching unions, which criticized both the timing—during the summer—and the lack of broad consultation. The progressive current of professors and researchers within the National Union of Higher Education (SNE-Sup) also threatened to strike, warning that the bill «contradicts articles 31, 33, and 154 of the Constitution, which guarantee quality education, democratic participation, and good governance». They further argued that the bill «strips Law 01.00, despite its flaws, of its reformist spirit and reduces the university to a subordinate administrative space devoid of democratic powers». According to them, it «weakens elected structures (university councils, establishment councils, departments, and laboratories) by granting absolute authority to the administration through the Council of Governors». Responding to questions, Baitas defended the reform, saying it comes «a quarter of a century after the last amendments in the early 2000s». He added: «The aim of the government's initiatives is to ensure that higher education contributes significantly to university independence, coherence of the public service, and the evolution of pedagogy. Debate is necessary». The Council of Governors Unions also questioned the nature of the Council of Governors, a non-elective body chaired by a senior figure appointed by royal decree for a renewable four-year term, based on scientific expertise and public management experience. The council will include representatives of the economic and social sectors, experts in higher education and research, a faculty member elected from the university council, and a representative of pedagogical and technical staff. It will also include representatives of the Ministries of Higher Education and Finance, the permanent secretaries of the Academy of the Kingdom of Morocco and the Hassan II Academy of Sciences and Techniques, as well as the walis and presidents of the regions or their delegates.
