The Director of Communication and Public Relations at the Ministry of Youth, Culture, and Communication, Mustapha Amedjar, highlighted the Moroccan experience of managing communication following the earthquake that struck several regions of Morocco on September 8.
This came during a speech at an international seminar on “Government Communication Responsibility towards Communities during Crises,” which was part of the 2nd Government Communication Forum held during the Tripoli Media Days event organized on December 20-24 in the Libyan capital.
During his address, Amedjar highlighted the broad scope of the Kingdom’s strategy adopted in managing the media and communication aspects during the earthquake, shedding light on the measures taken to coordinate rescue efforts and care for those affected by the earthquake, as well as allocating support and assistance for the rehabilitation of the affected areas.
He explained that the various relevant entities’ communication strategies relied on transparency with the media and on a swift response to the public’s need for reliable information about the earthquake and its repercussions.
This strategy also relied on mobilizing various national media, particularly the public ones, from the early moments of the earthquake to cover the related news, rescue efforts, sheltering of the affected, and involvement of the various stakeholders–including public officials, experts, and activists–to interpret the various repercussions of the incident and to promote national awareness efforts in facing its aftermath.
The official went on to say that the media played a crucial and fundamental role in this context by providing daily coverage to ensure the reporting of verifiable events, limiting fake news, and enabling the national and international public to access information related to the earthquake’s consequences.
Amedjar also highlighted the substantial attention from international media in reporting on the aftermath of the earthquake. Over 100 international media organizations dispatched correspondents and journalists to the Kingdom for this cause, particularly due to the earthquake affecting four regions with a population of over two million people, in an area neighboring the city of Marrakech, renowned as a global tourist hotspot.