Announcement of Eleven Million Dollar IDA Credit to Morocco for Education Project

• • INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION 1818 H STREET. N.W., WASHINGTON D. C. 20433 TELEPHONE: EXECUTIVE 3-6360 IDA Press Release No. 65/11 Subject: $11 million IDA credit to October 11, 1965 Morocco for education project The International Development Association, an affiliate of the World Bank, has approved a credit equivalent to $11 million to the Kingdom of Morocco to assist in financing the construction and equipment of 21 schools offering· general and specialized education and training at the secondary level. When the project is completed in 1968 it will permit about 30,000 additional students to be enrolled in secondary schools. This represents nearly a third of the total increase in secondary school enrollment envisaged _in Morocco's Three-Year Plan, 1965-67. • Following independence in 1956, the Moroccan Government embarked on a pro- gram to expand primary education, but expansion of secondary education did not start until four years later and is still inadequate. In 1964 only about 7% of the children of secondary school age were attending secondary schools. Further expansion is essential to provide trained manpower for both private and public sectors of the economy, to increase the supply of candidates for universities, and gradual~y to replace expatriates by Moro~can$ in· various medium and high- level posts. The Moroccan education system is an adaptation of the French. Five years of primary school are followed by secondary education which consists of either a short course (four years) or a long course (seven years). The first two years of both courses are devoted to general studies designed to further the • student's basic education and guide him in his choice of specialization. When  ( • - 2 - the student completes the short course he is given either a certificate of general education or one of technical education; the latter may be followed by employment • in industry, commerce or agriculture. The long course is divided into two cycles, the first of four years' and the second of three years' duration. The first cycle offers continued general education, and the second cycle consists of special.ized studies -- arts, sciences, technical, or commercial. Completion of the second cycle may lead to university study. 4. The 21 secondary schools to be constructed and equipped with the assist- ance of the IDA credit will provide basic education in arts, sciences, c0I11D.erce, agriculture, home economics and industry. When the schools are built and in operation they will have about 12,000 students in the common first two years of study, 6,700 students in the short course and 10,800 students in the long course. In the short course about 1,300 students will pursue training in agriculture, 600 • in commerce, 500 in industrial training and 100 in home economics, together with 4,200 in general studies. In the second cycle of the long course, about 1,900 students will be specializing in science, 500 in mathematics, 300 in industry and 100 in commerce. To these should be added about 3,800 students who will specialize in languages, history and other subjects. Many of the second cycle students will proceed to universities. It ia expected that of the total number of additional students to be enrolled in the new secondary schools, 24,000 will be boys and 6,000 will be girls. Boarding accoanodations will be provided for 3,400 students, of which three quarters will be boys. 5. The total cost of the schools is estimated at the equivalent of $16.2 million. This includes the cost of sites, site development works, construction, furniture, domestic appliances, science laboratories, workshop equipment, li- braries and professional fees. The IDA credit of $11 million will cover all • • - 3 - the foreign exchange requirements and part of the local currency. Contracts for civil ~orks involving amounts of $100,000 or more and for the procurement of equipment involving $30,000 or more will be awarded on the basis of international competitive bidding. The supply of trained teachers to staff the new schools will fall short of the need, and emergency measures will have to be adopted -- such as the emplo·y- ment of senior primary school teachers to staff the first two years of common study -- until 1969/70 when the output of the Advanc~d Teacher Training College is able to meet the teacher needs at the secondary school level. The IDA credit will be for a term of 50 years. Repayment of principal will begin March 15, 1976 after a 10-year period of grace. Thereafter 1% of the principal will be repayable annually for 10 years and 3% will be repayable 4I annually for the final 30 years. The credit will be free of interest but a service charge of 3/4 of 1% per annum on the amount withdrawn and outstanding will be made to meet IDA's administrative costs • •