Morocco: Law and Justice Association calls for end to land grabbing

The Association for Law and Justice in Morocco (ADJM) has called for an end to land grabbing in the country, noting that many of the victims are Moroccans living abroad, as reported by Yabiladi on November 24th.

ADJM is an NGO that works against land spoliation (illegal or unfair loss of property), particularly land grabbing. Since 2016, the organisation has taken many measures against this activity, including requesting royal intervention and creating an Anti-Spoliation mechanism. They say that despite their efforts, “many cases remain unresolved, and victims are exhausted from trying to assert their rights”, along with a system of “endemic corruption”.

The NGO, in its statement, also said that victims are subjected to “illegal property transfers, document falsifications, administrative or judicial complicity, and opaque procedures.” The situation has worsened since the COVID-19 pandemic, and over time, land grabbing has become a business that encourages corruption and money laundering.

Often, the “proxy model” is used by land grabbers, where victims are made to sign a ‘power of attorney’, which gives them the right to act on their behalf and eventually transfer land.

In October this year, the Ministry of Justice formalised how powers of attorney linked to real property must be registered in a central electronic register, hoping to reduce the use of proxy agents.

ADJM also urged the Minister of the Interior, Abdelouafi Laftit, to support the implementation of stricter laws and harsher penalties for fraudsters. Additionally, the organisation called for the establishment of a system that provides concrete legal assistance to victims, ensures full enforcement of court rulings, and returns stolen property to its rightful owners.

Separately, the Ministry of the Interior initiated a large-scale operation to conduct a census and regularise collectively owned land (belonging to Soulaliyate communities) that is being used illegally. The ministry’s report found that more than 62,000 private plots and farms – totalling 138,000 hectares – are occupied without a legal basis. A further 2,800 hectares across 7,855 plots are exploited by public agencies, and more than 1,100 hectares on over 3,200 plots are used by local authorities without permission.

ADJM hopes to mobilise public opinion and authorities on the matter as a national priority. They said, “its harmful consequences on the rule of law, investment, and the significant erosion of citizens’ trust in justice, thus fueling a sense of legal insecurity.”

At a time when Gen Z Moroccans are challenging governance practices, the issue of land exploitation highlights the same urgent need for reform and rebuilding institutional trust.

Yabiladi, Bladi.net, L’Economiste, Maghrebi.org