On his recent official visit to Morocco, the Grand Master, Fra’Andrew Bertie, spoke of his pleasure at the establishment of a Health Agreement between the Order and the State of Morocco. The Agreement was signed on May 27 by the Order’s Grand Hospitaller, Baron Albrecht Boeselager, and the Minister of Health for Morocco.
A further Agreement, to offer first aid training for personnel in emergency situations, was also presented and signed by Count de Beaumont Beynac, President of French Hospitaller Operations of the Order of Malta (OHFOM), and the Director General of the Moroccan Ministry of Health. Baron Boeselager, on behalf of the Grand Master, offered a financial contribution which ensured the continuation of the Order’s humanitarian aid in Morocco.
The Prime Minister, M.Driss Jettou, was charged by His Majestry King Mohammad VI to oversee the Grand Master’s visit and during the four days, the Minister of Health, M.Mohamed Sheik Biadillah accompanied the official entourage.
Fra’ Andrew, at a dinner given by the Prime Minister in his honour, expressed solidarity with the government and people of Morocco following the tragic recent events in Casablanca, and affirmed his deep appreciation for Morocco’s tradition of religious tolerance and the country’s dedication to peace and cooperation. He emphasized that the Order of Malta wished to continue its humanitarian assistance in the country. In reply, M.Jettou thanked the Grand Master for the Order’s continued help for the people of Morocco.
At an audience of Prince Mulay Rachid, brother of His Majesty, the Grand Master received the monarch’s official honours and in the days that followed, had the great pleasure of visiting Rabat, Casablanca, Tangeri and Ailah. The delegation was especially pleased to visit the Centre of Ophthalmology at Rabat’s Specialist Medical Hospital, where the Order has been directing a cataract surgery programme for a number of years, and the Emergency Response Trauma Center at the University of Casablanca, where the first results of the instruction programme for major-accident, emergency-response personnel were presented.
