The Moroccan government has announced its decision to allocate direct support to sheep importers who will import rams for Eid al-Adha, setting a $49 subsidy for each head of sheep that will be brought to the Moroccan market.
The National Professional Office for Cereals and Grains (ONICL) issued this week a notice in which it stated that the aim of this measure is to ensure a reduction in the cost of importing sheep and thus reduce the price of meat in markets across Morocco ahead of Eid al-Adha, one of the most important religious festivals for Muslims across the world.
The government’s decision to abolish import duties and value-added tax is meant to provide the national markets with an adequate supply of sheep for Eid al-Adha, the notice detailed, adding that this decision came before the government took the initiative to allocate importers of cattle a grant for every sheep imported to Morocco.
Once the import operations are complete, the notice explained, the importer must submit the necessary documents to ONICL’s office to benefit from the government’s financial support.
ONICL called for the submission of an import certificate issued by the Administration of Customs and Indirect Taxes, noting that the certificate must specify the means of transport, the number of heads imported, the name of the shipping vessel used during the operation, the date of arrival of the shipment, as well as a health conformity certificate delivered by the National Office of Sanitary Safety of Food Products (ONSSA).
Abdelali Ramo, head of the National Association of Red Meat Wholesalers and vice-president of the Red Meat Federation, explained that the government arrived at this decision after a meeting between meat wholesalers and the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries to discuss the conditions for importing sheep for Eid al-Adha.
The meeting concluded with the establishment of a federation of sheep importers, Ramo highlighted in a statement to SNRTnews. The import grant is MAD 500 for each head of sheep, he detailed, adding that benefiting from the grant remains conditional on the importer bringing at least 400 sheep to Morocco.
This news comes a few weeks after the Moroccan government announced in April its plans to import one million head of cattle and sheep.
Rachid Benali, President of the Moroccan Confederation of Agriculture and Rural Development (COMADER), said that Morocco had earmarked four million head of livestock for Eid al-Adha, a major religious holiday for Moroccans. But, he added, Morocco needed one million more to meet its population’s needs.
