Dahir No 1-15-75 of the 7 Ramadan 1436

( June 24th, 2015) Establishing Mohammed VI Foundation of African Oulema

and modified by Dahir No 1-16-81 of 16 Ramadan 1437 (June 22th, 2016)

Establishing the transfer of the Registered Office of the Foundation to Fez.

Praise Be to God

(Great Seal of His Majesty Mohammed VI)

Be it known by the present Dahir, may God elevate and strengthen its import, that Our Sharifian Majesty,

Aware of the importance of the religious, historical and cultural ties which unite Morocco with Africa, given that Morocco constitutes an inseparable part of this continent;

Striving to unite the efforts deployed by the Ulama of Morocco and by other African states in the service of Islam, namely through knowledge and the dissemination of  the values of this religion’s tolerance and by encouraging research and studies pertaining to Islamic thought and culture;

Our Sharifian Majesty,

Eager to preserve the unity of the Muslim religion, to thwart any extremist trend regarding thought and religion, and seizing every opportunity  for exchanging viewpoints among the Oulema of the African continent and for promoting peoples’ achievements in the field of science and knowledge;

Desiring to strengthen the age-old ties, historical and civilizational, which unite the Kingdom of Morocco and the other African States;

Ensuring the protection of the Muslim faith and the spiritual unity of the African peoples against all violent trends and ways of thinking that undermine the sanctity of Islam and its precepts and goals;

Reaffirming the need to unify the efforts of the Oulema of the African continent in order to accomplish their noble mission as it should be accomplished within the framework of conduct, orientation, explanation and education the goal of which is to inculcate in people honor and good manners;

For these reasons, Our Sharifian Majesty has decided to unify the efforts of our Kingdom’s Ulama and those of their colleagues on the continent so as to achieve these supreme aims;

Mindful of the Constitution, in particular Article 41,

Has decided the following:

CHAPTER I

General Provisions

Article 1: It is, hereby, established under the honorary presidency of our Sharifian Majesty a non-profit foundation, with legal entity and financial autonomy, named “Mohammed VI Foundation of African Oulema”, hereinafter referred to as the Foundation.

Article 2: The Foundation shall be located in Rabat in the Kingdom of Morocco.

Branches of the Foundation may be set up by Dahir in other African States in strict compliance with the laws and regulations in force in these States.

Article 3: The Foundation shall be subjected to the provisions of this Dahir, which constitutes its statutes, and shall have the character of public utility.

CHAPTER II

Objectives of the Foundation

Article 4: The Foundation shall work to achieve the following objectives:

• Unify and coordinate the efforts Muslim Oulema, in Morocco and in other African States, to make known the values of a tolerant Islam, to disseminate them and to reinforce them;
• Take every initiative that allows the integration of religious values of tolerance in every reform on which depends the development process in Africa, be it at the level of the continent or at that of each country;
• Liven up the intellectual, scientific and cultural action related to the Muslim religion;
• Consolidate historical relations between Morocco and the other African States, and foster their development;
• Encourage the establishment of religious, scientific, and cultural centers and institutions;
• Work towards the revitalization of the common Islamic cultural heritage, make it known and ensure its dissemination, preservation and protection;
• Establish relations of cooperation with the associations and organizations that pursue similar objectives.

CHAPTER III

Membership in the Foundation

Article 5: Membership shall be granted by the President of the Foundation, either upon his own initiative or upon the recommendation of the higher council provided for in Article 11 below, to Moroccan personalities or those from one of the African States, famed for their scientific visibility and erudition in the field of Islamic sciences.

Article 6: The Foundation members commit to working towards achieving its objectives by the means of, and in conformity with the terms set by,the deliberative bodies.

Article 7: Membership in the Foundation may be lost through dismissal, resignation or death.

Article 8: Dismissal is pronounced in the case of a member’s failure to comply with the statutes of the Foundation, or if he commits an infamous act or adopts an attitude that constitutes an affront to the constant values which the Foundation strives to consolidate.

Article 9: The dismissal decision shall be pronounced by the Higher Council after hearing the member’s explanations concerning the charges leveled against him.

Article 10: The member may resign from the Foundation, after he has honored his commitments vis-à-vis the latter, and after he has notified the Foundation’s Vice President mentioned in Article 11 below.

CHAPTER IV

The Apparatuses of the Foundation

Article 11: The apparatuses of the Foundation are:

• The Higher Council
• The Executive Bureau
• The Vice Presidency

Article 12: The Higher Council shall be in charge of the general affairs of the Foundation. It shall decide on all the issues in which the Foundation takes an active interest and makes decisions that allow it to attain its objectives, namely:

• To define the general orientations of the Foundation;
• To study and approve the Foundation’s annual action program;
• To examine the questions submitted to it by the President of the Foundation;
• To discuss and approve the Foundation’s budget project;
• To examine and approve the project of the Foundation’s rules of procedure;
• To study the applications of the would-be members of the Foundation and to submit them to the President of the Foundation;
• To approve the annual report on the Foundation’s activities and the financial report mentioned in Articles 23 and 25 below;
• To take cognizance of the report prepared by a chartered accountant on the financial situation of the Foundation.

Article 13: The Higher Council of the Foundation shall be composed, in addition to the Vice President of the Foundation in his capacity as the president, of all the members of the Foundation.

The Vice President shall be appointed by the President of the Foundation from among the personalities reputed for their competency, their integrity and their scientific visibility.

Article 14: The Higher Council shall convene at the invitation of its president at least once a year and as necessary.

The invitation shall be accompanied by an agenda; it is sent to the members at least one month before the date the meeting is to be held.

Article 15: The chairing of the meetings of the Higher Council shall be entrusted to the person designated by the President of the Foundation.

Failing that, the chairing of the meetings shall be entrusted alternately to the Council members, according to the conditions set forth by the rules of procedure of the Foundation.

Article 16: The meetings of the Higher Council are valid if half of the members are in attendance.

Decisions are made by consensus or by the absolute majority of the members present. In case of an even number of voices, the President shall have a casting vote.

Article 17: The Higher Council shall be assisted in the discharge of its tasks by specialized standing committees.

The Higher Council may set up ad hoc committees whose task is to examine particular questions relevant to its duties.

Article 18: The standing specialized committees shall include:

• The committee on scientific and cultural activities;
• The committee on Sharia studies;
• The committee on the revitalization of African Islamic heritage;
• The Committee on communication, cooperation and partnership.

The Foundation’s rules of procedure shall decide on the powers of these committees, their make-up and the terms of their operation.

The Executive Bureau

Article 19: The Executive Bureau shall perform the following tasks:

• Take all the necessary measures to ensure the good functioning of the Foundation, work towards enhancing its performance and to monitor the follow-up of the implementation of its activities.
• Set up projects and programs to be presented in the meetings of the Higher Council of the Foundation
• Coordinate the work of the committees emanating from the Higher Council;
• Examine the reports to be presented to the Higher Council, before submitting them to the latter for approval.

Article 20: The Executive Bureau shall consist, in addition to the Deputy President, in his capacity as President, of:

• The Secretary General;
• The chairpersons of the specialized standing committees;
• The Financial director of the Foundation.

The Executive Bureau can invite to its meetings, any member of the Higher Council or any person that is not a member and whose expertise it deems useful.

Article 21: The Executive Bureau shall meet upon the invitation of its president at least once every two months and whenever it is necessary.

Article 22: The meetings of the Executive Bureau shall be valid when at least one quarter of its members are present.

It makes its decisions in compliance with the terms of Article 16 below.

The Vice Presidency

Article 23: The Vice President is appointed by Dahir. His tasks are:

• Managing the affairs of the Foundation and ensuring  its smooth operation;
• Making provisions for the preparatory work necessary for holding meetings of the Higher Council;
• Implementing the decisions made by the bodies of the Foundation;
• Representing the Foundation to third parties and in court;
• Signing cooperation agreements and partnerships on behalf of the Foundation and submitting them to the Higher Council for approval;
• Preparing an annual report on the activities of the Foundation and submitting it to the Higher Council for approval.

The Vice President of the Foundation shall be the official spokesperson for the Foundation. He can appoint one of its members to deputize for him.

The Vice President may delegate, under his responsibility, part of his powers to the Secretary General.

Article 24: The Secretary General is appointed by Dahir upon the recommendation of the Vice President.

The Secretary General assists the Vice President in the accomplishments of his tasks and ensures, under his authority, the management of the administrative affairs of the Foundation and the Secretariat of the Higher Council

Article 25: The Financial Director shall be appointed by Dahir upon the recommendation of the Vice President.

The Financial Director shall be in charge of the management of financial affairs of the Foundation. He prepares its budget, and ensures its implementation under the authority of the Vice President. He collects revenues and authorizes expenditure, keeps his books and prepares the annual financial report on the financial situation, which he submits for approval after examination by the Executive Bureau, to the Higher Council.

CHAPTER V

Financial Organization

Article 26: The Budget of the Foundation consists of:

Revenues:

• State contributions;
• Subsidies allocated to the Foundation by public and private organizations, national, foreign and international;
• Products from properties given as Habous to the Foundation;
• Gifts and bequests;
• Products from the estates of the Foundation;
• Various resources.

Spending:

• Operational expenses;
• Equipment expenditure;
• Various expenditures.

Article 27: The Vice President signs jointly with the Financial Director all the documents pertaining to the collection of revenues and the payment orders.

Article 28: The Foundation shall benefit from the advantages and privileges granted to the associations of public utility and shall be subjected to the same obligations applicable to them.

Article 29: The Foundation shall keep its books in a way that allows it to determine its financial situation. It shall also submit its books to an auditor listed on the certified accountants to assess the accuracy of its accounts.

CHAPTER VI

Various Provisions

Article 30: The Vice President shall submit to the President of the Foundation the activity report and the financial report as they have been approved by the Higher Council.

Article 31: Our Majesty shall appoint a committee in charge of the initial establishment of the Higher Council of the Foundation; it shall be composed, in addition to Our Minister of Habous and Islamic Affairs as President, of five members selected from among the persons recognized for their scientific achievements and their intellectual integrity.

Article 32: Pending the elaboration of the budget of the Foundation and its approval, the Minister of Habous and Islamic Affairs shall put at the disposal of the Foundation the necessary material and human means that will enable it to discharge its tasks.

Article 33: This Dahir bearing law shall be promulgated in the Official Gazette.

Given in Rabat on 7 Ramadan 1436 (June 24th, 2015)