Moroccan King Mohammed VI chaired a working session at his palace in Rabat, devoted to the reconstruction of 6 earthquake-stricken areas with an amount of 120 billion dirhams (about 11.7 billion dollars), over 5 years, MAP quoted a statement by the royal office on Wednesday.

The statement added that the urgent program is aimed at the reconstruction of the regions of Marrakech, El Haouz, Taroudant, Chichaoua, Azilal and Ouarzazate, covering a total of 4.2 million people.

The new working session comes as an extension of King Mohammed VI's directives in recent weeks, which set out a well-thought-out earthquake response program.

This programme, prepared on the basis of a specific needs diagnosis, will work to rebuild housing and rehabilitate damaged infrastructure, in accordance with the established emergency measures, and, on the other hand, to promote social and economic development in the targeted areas.

The program is structured around four main components:

• Rehouse affected populations, rebuild housing and rehabilitate infrastructure.
• Breaking isolation and rehabilitating dirt areas.
• Accelerate the absorption of social deficits, especially in mountainous areas affected by the earthquake.
• Encouraging economic activities and employment, as well as valuing local initiatives.

It also includes the creation of a major platform for stocks and primary reserves (tents, blankets, beds, medicines, foodstuffs) in each region, in order to respond immediately to natural disasters.

During this working session, the King called on the government to implement this plan at the level of both the affected provinces and prefectures.