Morocco: Making Local Government Work

June 15, 2018
Network Update

Following mass protests that characterized the 2011 Arab Spring, the government of Morocco instituted unprecedented reforms that both placed greater power in the hands of local decision-making delegates and institutionalized democratic processes for their election. However, after the first elections were held in 2015, local representatives realized they had little experience working with their constituencies.

Therefore, the International Republican Institute (IRI) began working with local civil society organizations (CSOs) and newly-elected representatives to establish direct people-to-government dialogue. It launched an innovative app—Isla7—which allows citizens to flag problems that need to be solved in their communities. “Everyday Moroccans that see issues in their community such as a damaged road or fallen power line can use the app to report the problem using geotagged photos.” The reports appear on a map as a red dot. When the problem is resolved, the dot turns yellow—allowing citizens to visually see that the problem was resolved and that elected leaders are working to help them. Learn more about how IRI and Isla7 are increasing accountability and building trust in local government in Morocco.