Moroccan television now broadcasts programs dealing with cultural diversity.

When you consider that Morocco’s government enjoyed almost complete control over the country’s media before the turn of the century, it’s interesting to see that the impetus for abolishing the country’s media monopoly came directly from the government itself.
Even more amazing is the fact that it all happened in less than ten years.

In line with King Mohammed VI’s sweeping economic reforms, Morocco’s media monopoly was lifted in 2001. In 2003 the “High Authority of Audiovisual Communication” was established to re-write and govern Morocco’s media laws.

Freedom of investment in Morocco’s audiovisual sector was decreed, along with the application of schedules and granting of new licenses. Instantly, competition and private companies began to flourish in Morocco’s audiovisual arena.

In order to compete with the burgeoning private sector, Morocco’s public administration was converted into a state-owned limited company, Societe Nationale de Radiodiffusion et de Television (SNRT).

Today SNRT and 2M work in collaboration to maintain six national and regional television channels, and also 15 public radio stations.

Faical R. Laraichi CEO of SNRT

The end result is a multi-million dollar industry that provides Morocco with vast diversity in programming, education and entertainment.

Heading the charge since the beginning is SNRT’s CEO, Faical Laraichi. He agrees that along with the improvement of signal output and the phasing-out of analogue signals by 2010, SNRT has had to work hard on its programming to remain competitive, both locally and internationally.

“Before we used to buy [programming], whereas today we produce our own. We’ve even begun to sell to other countries and we win a lot of prizes for our programming,” he remarks. “Amongst all of our TV stations we have at least $15 million invested in their production.”

Compared to what it once was, the variety of shows on Moroccan television today is incredulous. Dealing with topics such as women’s rights, religious tolerance, and light entertainment and education, it is presented in French, Arabic, and Berber. Larachi is quick to add that Moroccan production is getting noticed around the world.

“We also win a lot of awards. In 2007, for example, we had the prize for a feature in the Dubai Movie Festival. We just had our own movie festival and a Moroccan movie won the first prize. We were also selected in Montreal and Germany’s movie festival, where we won first prize for a movie about handicapped people. Little by little we are popping up everywhere and it’s good because it shows that our production is recognised abroad,” he says.

After recently launching a sports channel, and also a news channel that has gained popularity in Tunisia and Algeria, SNRT will soon launch a free-to-air, 24-hour movie channel, and also its most ambitious project yet – the long awaited Berber-language channel, Amazigh (Amazigh, meaning “free men”, is the name Berber people use for themselves.)

Only 40% of the nation’s population speak the language, and until now programs in Berber dialects were only ever broadcast during off-peak viewing hours.

“We aim to show the Amazigh culture, not only the Amazigh language, so that all Moroccans, as well as the Berbers, discover and become enriched by the Berber culture,” he adds. “It [the Berber culture] must become a part of the national cultural identity. We should be conscious of all of its richness, and it’s a huge mission, no matter what language you do it in.”