Morocco appoints new government led by its first female head of government

Moroccan King Mohammed VI on Friday presided over a ceremony at the Royal Palace in Rabat to appoint the members of the country's new government.

The cabinet is headed by Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri, who became Morocco's first female head of government. Members of the new cabinet were also sworn in at the Royal Palace.

The government is backed by a parliamentary coalition comprising the Authenticity and Modernity Party, the Istiqlal Party, the Socialist Union of Popular Forces and the Party of Progress and Socialism.

Together, the four parties hold 207 seats in the newly elected 395-member House of Representatives.

Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita and Interior Minister Abdelouafi Laftit retained their posts in the new government.

Fouzi Lekjaa, head of Morocco's football federation and a former budget minister, was appointed minister of economy and finance.

According to CCTV+, the new cabinet is based on a parliamentary majority and marks the first time in Morocco's history that the government is headed by a woman.