Morocco has been granted observer status at the Council of Europe’s European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ), following close work with CEPEJ in the framework of the EU/CoE Programme on ‘Strengthening democratic reform in the southern Neighbourhood’.
According to the Enpi website (www.enpi-info.eu), the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe accepted Morocco’s request for observer status at CEPEJ. Since last year, the CEPEJ has been working closely with the Moroccan authorities to help evaluate how the country’s legal system works and provide guidance on reform, as part of the wider CoE-EU programme. Morocco will now join Israel as only the second non-European country to enjoy observer status at CEPEJ.
Strengthening democratic reform in the southern Neighbourhood is a joint EU-Council of Europe programme to support partner countries from the southern Mediterranean, engaged in building deep and sustainable democracy. The programme aims at strengthening the independence and efficiency of the judiciary; promoting good governance and preventing corruption and money laundering; combating the problem of trafficking in human beings; and promoting democratic values.
