HBJ Foundation signs MoU with Marrakesh

Jassim and Hamad Bin Jassim Charitable Foundation (HBJ Foundation) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Marrakesh State - Morocco with the aim of implementing a number of charitable projects in health and housing sectors.
The MoU was signed by HBJ Foundation’s Chief Executive Officer Sa’eed Mathkar al-Hajri and Ahmed Akhshaisin for Marrakesh in the presence of a number of officials from both sides.
In remarks during the occasion, Sa’eed Mathkar al-Hajri said: “The MoU signing reiterates the bonds of brotherhood between the Qatari and Moroccan people as well as strengthening bilateral co-operation for implementing a number of charitable projects in the fields of health and housing in Marrakesh”.
As per the MoU, al-Hajri explained, HBJ Foundation will build a 45-bed local hospital and equip it as per the technical specifications required by the Moroccan Ministry of Health at Sidi Yousif bin Ali in Marrakesh at a cost of QR17mn.
Al-Hajri added that the hospital’s foundation stone will be laid on the November 6 this year.
The partners agreed to build a number of vocational training centres with a view to empowering youth, in addition to the provision of support to the existing centres, the establishment of a number of schools for the different educational levels and a housing project, which was designed to include around 200 units, al-Hajri said noting that the HBJ Foundation will also focus on improving maternal and child health in this area, as part of which health centres will be established in small villages and linked to the hospital.
A kidney dialysis centre will also be provided with all the necessary equipment, al-Hajri said.
HBJ Foundation chief executive officer said co-operation will be maintained for the implementation of different development projects, stressing that the foundation will provide all necessary medical and technical equipment needed to commence its work.
Concluding his remarks, al-Hajri referred to the existing co-operation between HBJ Foundation and Princess Lala Salma Foundation for the Prevention and Treatment of Cancer for the establishment of a number of projects intended for the delivery of health services to the needy in Marrakesh and Bani Mallal areas.
For his part, Chief of Marrakesh State Ahmed Akhshaisin expressed pleasure at the MoU’s signing, praising HBJ Foundation for the care it gives to health and housing projects in Morocco.
The two sides have agreed on the different arrangements for the implementation of the hospital’s project in Sidi Yousif bin Ali in Marrakesh, he said adding that work on the project will begin during the forthcoming weeks and is expected to be completed within two years.
The hospital was part of a plan intended for meeting the health needs in the area, and is viewed as a cornerstone for the collaboration with HBJ Foundation.
The five-year MoU stipulates the commitment of the State of Marrakesh to provide plots of land on which the projects will be built.
According to the MoU, it was agreed that the hospital shall be named after Sheikh Jassim bin Jabor al-Thani, and the State of Marrakesh shall issue the necessary licences.