National Seminar Highlights the Importance of Instilling Values in Youth and Calls for Renewed Role of Schools in Enhancing National Belonging
Rabat – The “Initiative National First and Always” association organized an online national seminar on Friday, November 29, 2025, titled “Instilling Values and National Belonging in Youth – The Role of Education.” The event featured a number of educators, experts, and stakeholders interested in educational affairs.
The seminar commenced at 9 PM with the presence of Aziz Rabbah, the association’s president, and several of its members, while Amine El-Bousadni, an educational and administrative framework and executive member of the association, moderated the proceedings.
Professor Abdel Salam El-Jamaati, a higher education instructor and administrative and educational officer at the Regional Center for Education and Training Professions in the Tangier-Tétouan-Al Hoceima region, presented an intervention that addressed the weaknesses in the value system among Moroccan youth and the reasons behind its decline. Meanwhile, Professor Abdel Wahid El-Oulad El-Faqihi, an educational sciences instructor at the same center, discussed the manifestations and challenges related to national values, as well as the role of education in addressing and reinforcing them.
The discussions raised by the participants revealed a shared diagnosis of the value crisis increasingly evident among youth. They emphasized that schools remain the central pillar in any value reform, being the space capable of embracing students and guiding them toward active citizenship and responsible behavior.
The seminar yielded a comprehensive set of practical recommendations directed at various stakeholders, including educational institutions, families, local communities, civil society actors, media representatives, political leaders, as well as cultural, religious, economic, and research entities. The key recommendations included:
- Integrating education on values and digital citizenship across various subjects through practical activities.
- Developing practical educational guides for teachers and establishing regional committees to oversee values education.
- Enhancing the role of the school life charter and listening councils, while promoting citizenship initiatives within institutions.
- Supporting families in the school’s efforts through daily engagement and instilling respect and discipline values.
- Increasing local community and civil society contributions to providing spaces and experiences directed at youth citizenship.
- Producing media materials that highlight positive role models and encouraging political parties to engage in educational discussions with youth, away from political exploitation.
- Organizing cultural, religious, and economic activities that strengthen national belonging and link school values with everyday life.
- Advancing scientific research on values and the impact of digital transformations on youths’ perceptions of national belonging.
The seminar concluded by reaffirming that instilling authentic values and fostering a renewed sense of national belonging remains a collective necessity, and that schools, alongside families and other stakeholders, are today called to take on this vital task of protecting generations and preserving societal stability.
