Laila Benali confirms that energy efficiency is a national challenge requiring collective mobilization and fundamental reform.
Laila Benali, the Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development, stated that the energy efficiency initiative has become a strategic lever and a national challenge that calls for collective mobilization and root reforms. She pointed out that since its integration into the national energy strategy in 2009, this initiative has suffered from structural delays that must be addressed.
During a meeting of the Finance and Governance Monitoring Committee in the House of Representatives, dedicated to discussing the financial governance of the Moroccan Agency for Energy Efficiency, Benali emphasized that energy efficiency transcends technical aspects, touching upon the positioning of the state, public investment philosophy, and the distribution of roles between the central authority and regions. She asserted that every dirham invested in this area has a tangible impact in the medium and long term, both in terms of controlling energy bills and mitigating pressure on the public budget.
The minister announced the impending activation of the first performance contract with the Eastern Region as part of a new territorial approach that involves local communities and stakeholders in implementing energy efficiency programs. She stressed that centralized solutions are no longer sufficient, and regional implementation has become essential for the success of this vital initiative.
Benali called for the formation of a new generation of competencies that extends beyond energy production to focus on consumption control and resource efficiency. She emphasized the need to integrate specializations in the circular economy and water efficiency into training and employment systems, aligning with the current challenges of energy transformation.
The minister outlined a series of measures that have been launched, including granting the first license to an energy service company, establishing a new contractual framework with the private sector, encouraging self-production, and connecting surpluses to the electrical grid. She considered these steps as part of an integrated reform pathway.
Benali revealed that the project to reform the Moroccan Agency for Energy Efficiency is currently under consideration by the government’s secretariat, aiming to expand the agency’s responsibilities, enhance its independence, and activate its role in project monitoring and impact assessment, while promoting transparency and equity in accessing energy data.
She called for the widespread use of digital tools to enable citizens to monitor their energy consumption in real time, asserting that changing the legal framework is not an end in itself but a means to enhance governance and link responsibility to accountability, expressing the ministry’s openness to all initiatives that accompany this profound structural transformation.
