Morocco Vaccine Rollout: Foreign Residents Get Free Jabs, in Orderly Vaccination operation

 Foreign Residents living in Morocco, including European nationals, are getting the Covid-19 jabs, in an orderly free vaccination rollout that has drawn international praise.  

Many of the people who have been vaccinated expressed their appreciation for this gesture from the Moroccan Monarch, Mohammed VI, which allowed them to receive the vaccine on an equal footing with Moroccan citizens aged between 17 and over 75 years. 

They also commended the smooth running of the vaccination operation launched by The King, that starts with sending a simple text message to book appointments, and praised the professional care administered by the health staff in every vaccination center.

 

 Frederic Bauer, Chairman of the Association of French Residents in Rabat, said in a statement to local media that the vaccination campaign against the coronavirus “is running smoothly,” praising the commitment and strong mobilization of the moroccan authorities.

“Local  representatives went to such length as to knock on our doors to inform us of the vaccination’s date and venue”, he said, adding that following the first dose, an appointment was immediately scheduled for the second one.

 

 Marion Fossorier, a European living in Morocco for the last 30 years, said she was impressed by the logistics involved in the vaccination campaign.

“In less than 48 hours, I registered via the internet and got an appointment,” she said, indicating she was warmly welcomed and taken care of by the medical staff in a Marrakech vaccination center.

Once the national vaccination campaign started last January, the different diplomatic representations contacted their citizens residing in Morocco to encourage them to sign up for the roll-out.

Thanks to its swift management of the crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic at all levels, including the supply of vaccine and its nationwide rollout, Morocco has gained international recognition, ranking first in Africa in terms of average number of people who have been vaccinated. More than 4,8 million have already received the first dose, and more than 854,000 have had the second dose.

The Office of the World Health Organization (WHO) ranked Morocco among the top ten countries that successfully completed the challenge of vaccination against Covid-19. ”Congratulations on the success of this campaign!”, wrote WHO on its Twitter account.

 

 The success of this vaccination campaign benefiting Moroccan citizens and foreigners residing in Morocco is an extension of the achievements of the Kingdom, which was among the first countries to declare a state of emergency and to close its air, land and sea borders after the appearance of the first cases of Covid-19, and to announce a nationwide lockdown to cope with the pandemic.