Ahmad 
Morocco announced the establishment of two new industrial zones in the field of defense, with the aim of caring for security equipment, mechanisms and weapons systems.
This came in a statement by the Royal Palace spokesman, Abdelhak Al-Marini, published by the official news agency, following the approval of the Ministerial Council, headed by King Mohammed VI, of four projects related to the military field.
The Ministerial Council approved a draft decree aimed at creating two defense industrial acceleration zones.
This project aims to provide industrial zones to embrace industries related to defense and security equipment and mechanisms, weapons and ammunition systems.
The Council also approved a draft decree granting professors and heads of centers in military hospital institutions compensation for the tasks they perform.
The Council approved another draft decree aimed at creating the National Coordination Committee in the fields of oceanography and marine charts, as this project aims to improve coordination and cooperation in these vital fields.
The Kingdom raised the defense budget for 2024 to 124.7 billion dirhams ($12.47 billion), compared to 120 billion dirhams ($12 billion) in 2023, according to the country’s budget for the current year.
The Minister in charge of National Defense Administration, Abdel Latif Al-Wadiyi, previously announced in November 2022 that the budget allocated to defense is insufficient due to the security threats facing the region, as the defense budget in 2023 represents 5.2 percent of the gross domestic product.
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