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Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development Leïla Benali has added momentum to calls for a return to Morocco’s standard time. Speaking on Monday in the House of Representatives, she openly questioned the policy in place since 2018, which promotes GMT+1 as a way to reduce electricity consumption.
She said her department, in coordination with the Ministry of Digital Transition and Public Administration Reform, has launched a reassessment of the government’s study on GMT+1.
According to «preliminary data», the time shift does not have the same impact in winter as it does in summer. «There is no significant decrease in electricity demand; on the contrary, consumption has increased, as was the case in 2026», she noted.
The debate has also gained political traction. Last October, the parliamentary group of the Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM), a member of the governing majority to which Benali belongs, called on the government to reconsider the 2018 decision.
In a letter to the presidency of the House of Representatives, PAM argued that maintaining the extra hour has negative effects on public health and quality of life, particularly for students, pupils, and employees.
Public pressure has also been mounting. As of April 13, 2026, a national campaign launched on March 27 in favor of a return to standard time has gathered more than 344,000 signatures.
GMT+1 was adopted under the government led by Saad-Eddine El Othmani of the PJD.
