Morocco

D

Local Government

Morocco’s provinces are administered by governors who are appointed by the king and serve at the pleasure of the central government. Each province is divided into cercles, which are subdivided into circonscriptions (constituencies).

E

Health and Welfare

Health services are fairly well developed in Morocco’s cities, but health conditions in rural areas remain poor. The government provides for social security benefits. The country had some 1,943 people per doctor in 2004. Average life expectancy at birth in 2008 was 69 years for men and 74 years for women; the infant mortality rate was 38 deaths per 1,000 live births. Around 3.2 per cent of government expenditure was spent on health care in 1999.

F

Defence

Military service of 18 months is compulsory for males in Morocco. The army numbered about 180,000 men, the air force about 13,000, and the navy about 7,800 in 2004. In 2003, Morocco spent US$1,826 million on defence.

G

International Organizations

Morocco is a member of the United Nations (UN), the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Arab League, and the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC).

VI

History

The history of the region comprising present-day Morocco has been shaped by the interaction of the original Berber population and the various foreign peoples who successively invaded the country.

The first of the foreign invaders well known to history were the Phoenicians, who in the 12th century bc established trading posts on the Mediterranean coast of the region. These colonies were later taken over and extended by the Carthaginians. The conquest of Carthage by the Roman Empire, in the 2nd century bc, led to Roman dominance of the Mediterranean coast of Africa. About ad 42 the northern portion of what is now Morocco was incorporated into the Roman Empire as the province of Mauretania Tingitana. In the Germanic invasions that attended the decline of the Roman Empire, the Vandals in 429 occupied Mauretania Tingitana. The Byzantine general Belisarius defeated the Vandals in 533 and established the rule of the Byzantine Empire in parts of the country.