Nasser Bourita, the minister for Moroccans abroad reappointed: career, record and what changes for you
Reappointed on 16 October 2026, Nasser Bourita keeps Foreign Affairs and Moroccans Living Abroad. From Yacoub El Mansour to the UN, the Sahara, 60 consulates and two projects ahead: remote birth certificates and the Mohammedian Foundation for Moroccans abroad.
Addis Ababa, January 2017. In the lobby of the Sheraton, journalists surround a Moroccan diplomat holding an old Nokia, "safer than a smartphone", as TelQuel recounts. The next day, Morocco is due to rejoin the African Union, which it had left in 1984. Questions fly. He answers with one sentence: "There is a time for action and a time for communication."
That man is Nasser Bourita. On 30 January 2017, Morocco was admitted to the African Union. Nine years later, on Friday 16 October 2026, he was reappointed Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans Living Abroad in the government of Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri. For more than six million Moroccans worldwide, he is the minister in charge of the consulate, the passport, civil status and the summer welcome.
Key points
- •Born in 1969 in Taounate, a career diplomat for more than thirty years.
- •Foreign Minister since April 2017, reappointed on 16 October 2026. Moroccans living abroad have been part of his ministry's title since October 2019.
- •The consular network has grown from 40 to 60 consulates, 17 of them in France.
- •The Sahara file reached a milestone with Security Council resolution 2797 in October 2025.
- •Two projects await Moroccans abroad: remote birth certificates and the Mohammedian Foundation for Moroccans Living Abroad.
From a Rabat neighbourhood to the head of diplomacy
Nasser Bourita was born in 1969 in Taounate, in the Fez-Meknes region. The third of five children, he grew up in the working-class district of Yacoub El Mansour in Rabat and went to state schools, according to Atalayar. He studied law in Rabat: a degree in public law in 1991, a certificate in international relations in 1993 and a postgraduate diploma in public international law in 1995.
He joined the ministry through a competitive exam. In 1995 he became first secretary at the Moroccan embassy in Vienna, then moved to Brussels, to the mission to the European Communities. Then came the United Nations years: head of the UN division in 2003, then director of the United Nations and international organisations from 2006 to 2009. TelQuel reports that he could quote UN resolutions on the Sahara from memory, date and paragraph number included.
Chief of staff to minister Taïb Fassi Fihri, then ambassador and director general of multilateral relations, he became Secretary General of the ministry in 2011. On 6 February 2016 he was appointed minister delegate. On 5 April 2017 he took over the ministry. TelQuel then described him as the first career diplomat to hold the post, and the youngest under the reign of Mohammed VI.
On 9 October 2019, his title was extended to African Cooperation and Moroccans Living Abroad. He was reappointed in 2021 and again in 2026. He speaks Arabic, French, Spanish and English, according to Atalayar. He is married with two children.
The file of a lifetime: the Moroccan Sahara
Consulates were the first visible signs. In December 2019, the Comoros opened a consulate general in Laayoune. Three years later there were around thirty in Laayoune and Dakhla. In August 2024, at the opening of Chad's consulate in Dakhla, Nasser Bourita said that around 42% of African countries were represented in the Southern Provinces.
Major capitals followed. The United States recognised Moroccan sovereignty over the Sahara in December 2020 and reaffirmed it in April 2025, at a meeting in Washington where the autonomy plan was described as "the only basis" for a just and lasting solution. In April 2022, Spain called the plan "the most serious, realistic and credible basis". On 30 July 2024, France, in a letter from its president to the King, stated that the future of the Sahara "falls within the framework of Moroccan sovereignty". The United Kingdom called it in June 2025 "the most credible, viable and pragmatic basis". Germany spoke in April 2026 of "a serious and credible basis".
On 31 October 2025, the Security Council adopted resolution 2797 with 11 votes in favour, none against and 3 abstentions. The text calls for negotiations "on the basis of the autonomy plan proposed by Morocco". On 22 September 2026, at the UN General Assembly, the minister summed up the Kingdom's position: "First, there is no solution outside the framework of autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty."
Africa and the Atlantic
The return to the African Union in January 2017 opened another front. On 8 June 2022, Rabat hosted the first ministerial meeting of the Atlantic African States Process. On 25 September 2026, in New York, Nasser Bourita chaired the eighth: "Four years after the launch of the African Atlantic Initiative in Rabat in June 2022, we can say with confidence that the prospects for integration in our space are strengthening with every step."
On 19 July 2026, in Freetown, the ECOWAS countries signed the agreement for the African Atlantic gas pipeline, around 6,800 kilometres between Nigeria and Morocco through thirteen countries. And Morocco is a candidate for a non-permanent seat on the Security Council for 2028-2029, with the election due in June 2027.
What his ministry does for you
This is the part that matters day to day. The official portal for Moroccans worldwide counts more than 6.1 million Moroccans abroad. For them, the ministry first expanded its network.
"We have increased the number of the Kingdom's consular representations abroad from 40 to 57, introduced mobile consulates and developed digital services to bring consulates closer to our compatriots," the minister told MPs in May 2023. The network grew to 59 consulates in January 2024, then to 60 in July 2025, 17 of them in France. New openings include Villemomble, near Paris, Murcia, Toronto and Miami. In July 2025, 22 new consuls general were appointed, 10 of them women.
Procedures have changed too:
- •Online appointments, available at any consulate, wherever you live.
- •A central electronic consular register, in service since 23 October 2023, for passports and national ID cards.
- •A call centre in seven languages, mobile consulates and online payment of stamp duties.
- •Online platforms: econsulat, Chikaya for complaints, Watiqa for documents, Izdiyad, and the unified consular guide on consulat.ma.
- •Help in the courts: committees dedicated to Moroccans abroad exist in the courts of appeal and other courts.
In summer, the ministry runs the consular side of Operation Marhaba. In 2025, consulates stayed open from 15 June to 15 September, with services on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. "The aim is to improve this operation year after year, so as to live up to the ambition of His Majesty the King," he said in June 2025. The 2026 edition welcomed more than 4.1 million Moroccans from abroad.
Relations with Spain also matter for your crossings. The joint declaration of 7 April 2022 provided for the restoration of passenger sea links and joint preparation of Marhaba.
The projects ahead
Remote birth certificates. The ministry has digitised nearly 1.3 million copies. In September 2025 it announced the "forthcoming launch of the service for issuing birth certificates remotely to Moroccans abroad". By mid-October 2026, no source confirms that it has opened.
The Mohammedian Foundation for Moroccans Living Abroad. On 6 November 2024, His Majesty the King announced its creation as the "operational arm" of policy for Moroccans abroad, with a national mechanism to mobilise skills, along with an overhaul of the Council of the Moroccan Community Abroad. By mid-October 2026, the official portal still says the Foundation will carry out its missions "once created". It is one of the files awaiting the new government.
Diaspora investment. Your remittances exceeded 122 billion dirhams in 2025 and reached 89.2 billion by the end of August 2026, up 9% year on year. But the share of Moroccans abroad in national private investment remains around 10%, a share the King has called for raising.
Nine years ago in Addis Ababa, he chose the time for action. For Moroccans worldwide, the next milestones are concrete: a birth certificate obtained without travelling, and a foundation up and running for the diaspora.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Nasser Bourita? A career diplomat born in 1969 in Taounate, Foreign Minister since April 2017. He was reappointed on 16 October 2026 in the government of Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri.
Which minister is in charge of Moroccans abroad? Nasser Bourita, Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans Living Abroad. Moroccans abroad have been part of his ministry's title since October 2019.
How many consulates does Morocco have abroad? 60 consulates in July 2025, 17 of them in France, compared with 40 before the expansion plan.
Can I book an appointment at any consulate? Yes. Appointments are booked online and are available at any consulate, wherever you live.
Can I get a birth certificate remotely? The service was announced in September 2025. By mid-October 2026, its launch has not been confirmed.
What is the Mohammedian Foundation for Moroccans Living Abroad? An institution announced by the King on 6 November 2024 to carry out policy for Moroccans worldwide. It had not yet been set up by mid-October 2026.
Sources
- •Cover photo: Nasser Bourita in Tallinn, 15 April 2025, Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, licence CC BY 2.0
- •Official biography, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (diplomatie.ma) and department for Moroccans abroad (mre.gov.ma)
- •Le Brief and Morocco World News, 16 October 2026; TelQuel, profile of 5 April 2017; Atalayar, 13 August 2024
- •Le360, 30 May 2023; Hespress, 17 January 2024, 4 June 2025, 4 July 2025, 20 September 2025, 2 February and 2 October 2026
- •Spain-Morocco joint declaration of 7 April 2022 (La Moncloa); UK-Morocco joint communiqué of 1 June 2025 (gov.uk); EU-Morocco communiqué of 30 January 2026
- •Security Council resolution 2797, 31 October 2025
- •TelQuel/MAP, 23 and 25 September 2026; maroc.ma/MAP, 20 July 2026; SNRTnews/MAP, 14 August 2024
- •Official portal marocainsdumonde.gov.ma, consulted on 17 October 2026
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