Morocco’s Ministry of Education has described as fake news it postponed the the regional baccalaureate exam.
The examination, which normally holds around July, is fixed for October 1 to 3, 2020.
It was earlier postponed to September due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. But with the virus situation in Morocco not improving, the ministry later reschedule it for October.
However, a press statement, attributed to the ministry, had said the exam had been postponed indefinitely due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The ministry, however, clarified that the October 1-3 fixed for the exam though sacrosanct depends on the country’s pandemic situation by the set date.
The ministry also urged Moroccans to make sure about the veracity of each information from the ministry’s official sources.
On August 26, Morocco’s Minister of Education, Saaid Amzazi, declared that it was virtually impossible to cancel the regional baccalaureate exam.
For the minister, cancelling the exam would discredit the baccalaureate diploma.
Amzazi made the declaration in a hearing before the Education, Culture, and Communication Committee at the House of Representatives.
Five days later, on August 31, the ministry announced that regional baccalaureate exams would take place between October 1-3.
The statement added that postponing Morocco’s regional baccalaureate exams would benefit students, giving them more time to improve their knowledge skills before the tests.
Regional baccalaureate exams are the tests that students in Morocco take at the end of the second year of high school. Students take the exams in secondary subjects, depending on their branch of studies.
The regional exams make up 25% of the overall mark of the Moroccan baccalaureate.
This year, 196,664 students passed the normal session of the final baccalaureate, including 102,882 who claimed their success with distinction.
The success rate for this year’s normal baccalaureate session stood at 63.08%, down from 65.55% in 2019.