During this gala ceremony held as part of the Heritage Month, Minister of Youth, Culture and Communication Mohamed Mehdi Bensaid signed a ministerial decision to label the "Moroccan Heritage", pending the finalization of a related decree.

The event aims to certify, list and inventory Morocco's sumptuous heritage as well as tangible and intangible national know-how with a view to protecting it from repeated appropriation attempts.

This event kicks off the celebrations of the Heritage Month (April 18 - May 18).

In line with the implementation of the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, the Ministry launched last year several anthropological studies. The heritage list was updated in the wake of actions aimed at the dissemination of this heritage.

"The Heritage Month is an ideal opportunity to boost the tourism economy by enhancing our unique cultural product, and this through an open program, allowing all Moroccans to explore their heritage, even transforming the archaeological sites into spaces for meetings, dialogue and discussion," Bensaid said in a speech.

Regarding the program of this edition, the minister said that it features over 86 guided tours of monuments and historical sites, 18 workshops for students, 11 artistic animations, 29 video sequences to discover the national heritage inside and outside the Kingdom, as well as conferences and workshops.

Morocco was elected on March to the presidency of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage for the year 2022.

The Kingdom will, hence, chair the 17th session of this committee, which will be held from November 28 to December 3, 2022.