The bill received the approval of 94 MPs, while 24 others abstained and two opposed it.
Speaking on this occasion, the Minister Delegate to the Head of Government, responsible for Investment, Convergence and Evaluation of Public Policies, Mohcine Jazouli, stressed that Bill No. 22.24 comes into force in application of the High Royal Instructions aimed in particular at making productive investment a lever for reviving the national economy.
The government, he continued, is working towards the establishment of a global and integrated vision to transform the CRIs into an investment engine at the local level, by placing them under the direct supervision of the Head of Government, who has delegated some of his powers to the Ministry of Investment, Convergence and Evaluation of Public Policies, in order to strengthen cooperation between the central level and territorial areas, in addition to improving the investor’s journey.
The Minister also said that the Executive has ensured the improvement of the legal framework, through the development of the draft law on the reform of the CRIs and the creation of the unified regional investment commissions, noting that this text constitutes “an important part of the new stage that the CRIs will have to take to meet current challenges.”
Furthermore, he indicated that this bill introduced a series of important new features, including strengthening the responsibility of the CRIs in decision-making and consolidating their role in monitoring decisions taken by the unified regional investment commissions.
It also involves the implementation of investment projects, improving coordination between the centres and the various stakeholders in the investment ecosystem at the regional level, as well as supervising the granting of exemptions in terms of town planning and strengthening the procedure for processing appeals.
For their part, the majority groups appreciated the reform measures contained in the bill, which will allow the Kingdom to improve its business climate capable of becoming a “locomotive of economic transformation and an attractive regional crossroads for investments”, calling for continuing legislative and regulatory reforms and taking the necessary measures to overcome the obstacles hindering investment.
The majority deputies also welcomed the amendments made to the bill, which should strengthen Morocco’s integration in promising sectors through provisions aimed at implementing the State’s investment policy, within the framework of strengthening support systems and their mechanisms, and the adoption of administrative decentralization during the development and approval of projects.
In addition, they praised the importance of strengthening the missions of the CRIs and their governance, as well as improving the efficiency of the unified regional investment commissions, advocating for the acceleration of the implementation of advanced regionalization, the operationalization of the charter of administrative decentralization, as well as the specific skills of the regions and other local authorities.
The discussion on this bill focused mainly on the granting of exemptions in terms of town planning for the benefit of any investment project in the industrial or hotel sector.
In this wake, the deputies of the opposition groups presented proposals for amendments mainly concerning the cancellation of this article, “because of the possibilities it offers of contravening the legislative and regulatory provisions governing town planning”.
These proposals also included the cancellation of the exemption system, for its “stimulating effect on the production and implementation of urban planning schemes, development plans and related urban planning documents”.
It was also proposed to add “mediation” to “conciliation” before moving on to the arbitration phase, with regard to the settlement of disputes that may arise between investors and the relevant public administrations or bodies.
In the absence of a solution, it was requested to resort to the Head of Government for arbitration, as well as the proposal to create an independent commission to play the role of amicable mediator between the investor and the various administrations and establishments.
2024-09-05 06:52:26