Morocco

The Interministerial Delegation for Human Rights / Délégation Interministérielle aux droits de l’Homme (DIDH) is a standing national mechanism responsible for preparing and following up on the implementation of the governmental human rights policy, as well as drafting national reports and ensuring implementation of international human rights commitments.

INSTITUTIONAL SETUP

Established in 2011 by Decree No. 2-11-150, the DIDH was reorganized in September 2025 by Decree No. 2-25-541 to include four departments in charge of 1) Planning and relations with civil society, 2) National reporting and follow-up, 3) Studies, monitoring, and international and regional cooperation, and 4) Human and financial resources and general affairs.

It is a permanent governmental structure under the authority of an Inter-ministerial Delegate (ministerial rank) appointed by His Majesty the King of Morocco. It is now attached to the Head of Government.

Composition

All relevant government departments, national institutions, regional/local authorities, and civil society organizations participate in the work of the DIDH, with theme-specific focal points designated as needed.

DIDH drafts reports and stakeholders provide information via correspondence, meetings, and working sessions. Drafts are shared with stakeholders for review before final adoption. Consultations are organized with other relevant parties.

Secretariat

The national mechanism (DIDH) has a general secretariat as well as a dedicated team, organized according to an established organizational chart. In coordination with the various government departments and national institutions, the DIDH ensures interaction with the United Nations human rights mechanisms, including the preparation of reports, the follow-up on implementation of recommendations, the consolidation of responses to individual communications and calls for contributions, as well as coordination with special procedures in the context of organizing country visits.

Institutional memory

Since its establishment in 2011, the DIDH has had a dedicated staff and its own information system, which allows it to preserve institutional memory, even in the event of personnel changes.

Two methodological guides have been prepared and published on the processes related to establishing national reports and preparing their review and on the implementation of recommendations. Many internal operations manuals have also been adopted.

MANDATE

DIDH's mandate includes:

• Reports to the United Nations Human Rights Mechanisms (United Nations Treaty Bodies, Universal Periodic Review).
• Response to individual complaints from UN treaty bodies
• Response to communications (allegation letters, urgent appeals, questionnaires) from UN Special Procedures and organization of visits by UN Special Procedures
• Follow-up on recommendations from human rights mechanisms (Special Procedures, treaty bodies, Universal Periodic Review)
• Implementing recommendations from human rights mechanisms (incl contributing to legislative changes)
• Human rights awareness and education

The Inter-ministerial Delegation for Human Rights (DIDH) engages with all UN human rights mechanisms.

Process for the preparation of state reports

There is no ad hoc committee for report preparation. It is the DIDH that undertakes the preparation of reports, responses, and contributions arising from the international human rights commitments of the Kingdom of Morocco, in close coordination with the departments and institutions concerned with the specific thematic area.

Coordination is carried out through correspondence exchange, coordination meetings, and working sessions. A schedule is adopted to guide the report preparation process and ensure its timely submission.

• The report preparation process is initiated with a scoping meeting where the normative framework relevant to the report’s subject is presented. An assessment of the implementation of previous recommendations is also established.
• After examination of the recommendations from previous reviews and the list of issues, specific data is requested from the relevant parties. Other information previously prepared or collected by the DIDH may also be used in this process, with stakeholders requested to provide updates.
• The entire resulting body of documentation is verified, processed, and consolidated, taking into account its coherence and relevance, as well as the technical requirements of the report being prepared.
• A first draft of the report is shared with the various stakeholders for feedback, comments, and/or additional information.
• The revised draft report is then presented during consultations with stakeholders who were not directly involved in the process.
• The final report is adopted during an official meeting.

COORDINATION

Depending on the subject, the DIDH may hold several meetings per week with ministerial departments and/or national institutions. On average, three coordination meetings are held each week. Additional meetings are organized on an ad hoc basis with other actors, such as civil society.

The DIDH involves all stakeholders, depending on the relevant theme or report. Those include government departments, national institutions, the parliament, local authorities, as well as civil society organizations. Generally, given the diversity of the topics addressed, these stakeholders designate specific focal points for each theme.

Channel of communication with the National Statistics Office

The High Commission for Planning / Haut-Commissariat au Plan (HCP, Morocco’s national statistics office) is systematically involved in the process of preparing reports and following up on recommendations. It provides data that contribute to enriching the reports and is regularly consulted for the preparation of responses to questionnaires and calls for contributions addressed by the OHCHR or other bodies.

Channel of communication with the Parliament

The DIDH involves the Parliament at every stage of the process. It begins by presenting draft reports to both chambers, ensures the involvement of parliamentarians during the review of reports by relevant UN bodies, and concludes by sharing with both chambers the outcomes of these reviews, including the recommendations. Parliament may also be involved in special procedures visits.

Channel of communication with the Judiciary

While maintaining its independence from the executive and legislative branches, the Judiciary is involved in all processes of interaction with UN human rights mechanisms by providing the DIDH, upon request from the latter, with information on developments in the judicial sector (jurisprudence, individual cases, etc.), as well as statistical data.

Local and regional governments

In the context of preparing reports for UN mechanisms, the DIDH involves regional and local authorities collecting their feedback and comments. The DIDH has also launched several initiatives aimed at engaging them in strategic human rights planning (for example, the National Human Rights Action Plan (PANDDH)) and in the implementation of national and international commitments.

CONSULTATION

While fully respecting their independence, especially that of the National Human Rights Council (Moroccan NHRI), the DIDH systematically consults national institutions on matters that directly concern them.

Likewise, civil society organizations are actively involved in the reporting process, providing feedback and recommendations on draft reports during meetings and workshops held at both the national and regional levels.

The Interministerial Delegation for Human Rights is committed to developing a new approach to consultation with civil society organizations. In this regard, these organizations are henceforth associated with the preliminary consultations relating to the preparation of national reports, including with respect to the methodology adopted. This dynamic was inaugurated with the holding, on 22 July, of a consultation meeting with civil society associations, devoted to the mid-term report on the implementation of the recommendations stemming from the fourth cycle of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR).

The Moroccan NMIRF (DIDH), is working on developing/adopting a digital tracking system for the follow up to recommendations and their implementation.

The Kingdom of Morocco adopted and implemented a National Action Plan on Democracy and Human Rights (PANDDH 2018-2021), which is presently being updated. It is also in the process of adopting a national action plan on the implementation of recommendations from UN human rights mechanisms.

Regarding recommendations, the DIDH plays various roles to ensure they are duly taken into consideration by various stakeholders:

• ensuring their dissemination during meetings, training sessions and dedicated events that involve different stakeholders, including government departments, national institutions, local authorities, parliament and non-governmental organizations;
• clustering them and defining responsibilities regarding their implementation (responsible parties, deadlines, etc.);
• seeing to the implementation of the recommendations that fall under its mandate;
• following up on the implementation of recommendations by the respective relevant stakeholders;
• attending to mainstreaming Morocco’s human rights commitments in national public strategies, plans, programs and policies by making several contributions, such as supporting the process of preparation and implementation, offering advice and technical input, delivering opinions on draft legal, regulatory, and policy instruments, or serving on interministerial committees.

Since the adoption of the new decree, the DIDH has been entrusted with new responsibilities relating to strategic planning in the field of human rights. Accordingly, Article 2 of the new decree provides that:

"The Interministerial Delegation is entrusted with preparing government policy in the field of human rights and monitoring its implementation, in coordination with ministerial departments and the relevant bodies. It is also responsible for preparing reports and monitoring the implementation of international commitments and for contributing to strengthening national achievements in this field" (unofficial translation from Arabic).

To this end, and without prejudice to the powers assigned to ministerial departments and the relevant bodies under the legislative and regulatory texts in force, the Interministerial Delegation shall:

• Oversee the preparation of national strategies, plans and programs in the field of human rights and monitor their implementation;
• Coordinate with ministerial departments and relevant bodies to integrate human rights into public policies, plans and sectoral programs, within the framework of monitoring Morocco’s international commitments;
• Prepare Morocco’s national reports on its international human rights obligations, submit and discuss them and engage with the relevant international bodies;
• Strengthen engagement in international initiatives and issues relating to human rights;
• Contribute, within its remit, to strengthening participation in national bodies and international forums;
• Contribute to the study of the provisions of international conventions that the Kingdom of Morocco intends to join or ratify;
• Propose any measure aimed at ensuring the entry into force of international human rights conventions ratified or acceded to by the Kingdom;
• Undertake any action and initiative likely to promote human rights within the framework of implementing public policies and consolidating national achievements in this field;
• Strengthen cooperation with civil society associations, non-governmental organizations and relevant national bodies in the field of human rights.

Délégation interministérielle aux droits de l’Homme (DIDH) (Address : Angle Avenue Ibn Sina & Rue Oued El Makhazine, Agdal – Rabat, Morocco).

Email: nmirf@didh.gov.ma

DIDH website: https://didh.gov.ma/