The Minister of Youth, Culture, and Communication, Mohamed Mehdi Bensaid, confirmed on Tuesday in the House of Representatives that the ministry is prioritizing support for national media production, strengthening the position of press institutions, and their economic model as part of its strategic directions for the year 2026.
Mr. Bensaid explained, during his presentation of the ministry's sub-budget for the year 2026 before the Education, Culture, and Communication Committee in the House of Representatives, that within the framework of continuing to complete the restructuring of the public audiovisual sector, new specifications will be prepared in 2026 for each of the National Radio and Television Company, the "Soread 2M" company, the "Medi 1 TV" company, and the "Medi 1" radio company, as well as preparing a program contract between the state and the public audiovisual sector. Regarding print and electronic press, Mr. Bensaid said that the ministry intends to continue the project to amend the Press and Publishing Code, organize training courses for professional journalists on the issue of addressing fake news at both regional and national levels, as well as training courses for professional journalists in the field of sports journalism at both regional and national levels. On the other hand, the minister praised the work that the Moroccan News Agency (MAP) carried out in 2024 by covering and following up on the most prominent events at the national and international levels. He highlighted that the agency intends to integrate artificial intelligence solutions into professional operations in 2026, publish a unified mobile phone application, effectively launch new platforms (MAP.ma) and (MAPMEDIA), implement a network access control (NAC-NETWORK ACCESS CONTROL) solution, enhance data security, and deploy monitoring capabilities in the dark web to enhance vigilance measures against emerging threats. He indicated that the budget for the communication sector for the year 2026 will reach 2 billion, 350 million, and 318 thousand dirhams, of which 1 billion, 875 million, and 206 thousand dirhams are allocated for management, and 475 million, and 112 thousand dirhams for investment. Regarding the youth sector, the minister stated that the programs and projects of the next year aim to expand access to programs and services for young people, strengthen the economic and social integration of young people through training, self-employment, and entrepreneurship, and consolidate the values of citizenship and innovation by encouraging participation and volunteer work. He added that the ministry also intends to launch a 2026 program to rehabilitate and equip the sector's institutions at the level of the Kingdom's regions, continue the completion of summer camp center projects according to a new design, as well as the projects concluded within the framework of agreements with various partners at the national level. On the other hand, Mr. Bensaid explained that the action plan for the cultural sector during 2026 aims to consolidate the role of culture in the social and economic life of Moroccans, and strengthen the Kingdom's position as a country of coexistence and tolerance, through an action plan that aims to make culture a driver of human development. He highlighted that the sector's programs aim to protect and enhance the Moroccan cultural heritage, develop books and public reading, revitalize cultural and artistic creativity, simplify administrative procedures and digitize the administration, modernize cultural infrastructure, and strengthen cultural diplomacy. Mr. Bensaid affirmed that the ministry will continue the efforts that began in 2021 to protect intangible cultural heritage, by continuing the partnership with UNESCO, promoting the "label maroc", signing a partnership agreement with the World Intellectual Property Organization, and continuing to register Moroccan heritage elements with UNESCO and the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.
