Mr. Ahmed Herzenni, President

Mr. Ahmed Herzenni was born in 1948 in Guercif.

He was appointed by His Majesty King Mohammed VI President of the Advisory Council on Human Rights (CCDH) on May 31st, 2007, following the passing away of its former President, Mr. Driss Benzekr.

In November 2006, His Majesty appointed him Secretary General of the Moroccan Higher Council for Education (CSE). Mr. Herzenni was already a member at this Council, whose objective is to inject dynamism into the reform of education and to ensure its full promotion.

Mr. Herzenni is holder of a PhD in sociology and in anthropology from the University of Kentucky in the United States (1994) and a DEA diploma (Diploma of higher studies) in sociology from the Rabat Faculty of Arts and Humanities. He started his professional career as a teacher, then a sociologist specialised in the rural world affairs. He was a researcher then research director at the National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA). In the academic year 1995-1996, he held the post of a professor at Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane.

Mr. Herzenni undertook missions of national and international consultant on issues related to agriculture, rural development and management of natural and environmental resources, participatory approach and vocational training. Moreover, he was associate member at training and research unities at the Rabat-Agdal Faculty of Arts and Humanities.

Mr. Herzenni was a former member of the Administrative and Executive Commission of the International Group on Collective Action and Property Rights. He was also a member at the following bodies: the Réseau maghrébin des experts en sciences sociales (Maghreb network of experts in social sciences), the forum maghrébin des études sociologiques (Maghreb forum for sociologic studies), the Scientific Commission for treating the results of the general census of population and housing and the Scientific Commission in charge of the Jubilee Report on Human Development in Morocco.

Additionally, Mr. Herzenni held the posts of National Secretary of the Appel Citoyen Association (Citizen call), coordinator of the Observatoire national de la transition démocratique (National observatory for democratic transition) and founder of the Groupe national de recherche sur la démocratie locale (National group for research on local democracy).

Mr. Herzenni, who was a director of Al Mouzari’ Al Maghribi magazine, published many articles and analyses, including:

- قراءة في السيرة السياسية لماركس (A Reading in Marx’s political record)

- اليسار، الإسلام والديمقراطية (The left, Islam and democracy)

- Le Maroc Décanté