Morocco’s National Observatory for Human Development (ONDH) and the World Bank signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Wednesday in Rabat. This agreement establishes a framework for cooperation to co- monitor and evaluate various social welfare programs.
President of ONDH Otmane Gair and Ahmadou Moustapha Ndiaye, World Bank Country Director for the Maghreb and Malta signed the MoU.
The collaboration involves conducting studies, surveys, and microsimulations to evaluate the programs’ sustainability and relevance. It aims to strengthen the monitoring and evaluation of social protection programs, enhance the education system, and analyze and model social policies.
As part of this partnership, World Bank will provide technical support to ONDH in key areas. These include monitoring and evaluating systems for population targeting via the National Population Registry (RNP),Unified Social Registry (RSU), and Direct Social Assistance Program (PASD), and developing indicators to assess the impact of social programs on poverty reduction, access to essential services, and social inclusion.
The World Bank will also assist ONDH in developing systems to track student progress and identify areas requiring further intervention, as well as supporting ONDH in conducting microsimulation studies to assess the effects of social protection, education, health, and early childhood policies on people and households. This includes creating predictive models to guide evidence-based policymaking and evaluating targeting systems, as well as strengthening ONDH’s household survey framework.
Ndiaye told Morocco’s Press Agency (MAP) that the collaboration will help unify efforts and foster shared tools for monitoring and evaluation. He hopes that the initiative would enhance human development policies in Morocco, ensuring they align with social welfare objectives.
Gair highlighted that the MoU focuses on creating a system to monitor and evaluate all programs under the Royal Initiative. This includes supporting public authorities in decision-making
Representatives from government ministries, public institutions, UN agencies in Morocco, academics, and civil society actors, attended the signing .