The Moroccan state’s support for efforts to develop scientific research and innovation contributed to achieving the excellence and distinction of many researchers, through their scientific productions, which helped improve the international radiation of national scientific production.
As part of the celebration of scientific research in Morocco, the event of the first edition of the “Morocco Scopus ” Awards for the year 2022, organized by the National Center for Scientific and Technical Research under the auspices of the Ministry of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Innovation, concluded on Thursday evening, October 6th . In cooperation with the Elsevier Foundation.
Jamila Al-Alami, Director of the National Center for Scientific and Technical Research, said - in a press release for the center - that "the state, through the supervision of the Custodian Ministry, continues to support the efforts of the National Center for Research and Technology to develop the national system for scientific research and innovation."
She added, "This support contributed to achieving the excellence and distinction of many researchers, through their scientific productions, which contributed to improving the international radiation of national scientific production. Perhaps the goal of the event is to celebrate these scientific competencies, which contributed to improving the performance of our national system for scientific research and innovation." .
Winners from a variety of disciplines
"The winners of these awards represent many disciplines, highlighting the global contribution of Moroccan experts and their commitment to applying their research for the benefit of society," said Felix Hest, Vice President of International Markets at Elsevier Foundation.
The selection of winners is based on rankings in the SCOPUS Indexing Database, one of the most popular databases in the field of scientific research, and takes into account the number of articles published as well as their relevance and the number of times they are cited. The list of honored researchers included 19 researchers in various specializations, and they are:
Jamal Ebrini: Researcher in agricultural and biological sciences at Abdelmalek Al-Saadi University.
Amin Aziz: Researcher in biochemistry, genetics and molecular biology at Hassan II University.
Anas Sharafi is a researcher in business, management and accounting at Cadi Ayyad University in Marrakech.
Mohamed Zouili: researcher in chemical engineering at Hassan II University in Casablanca.
Rachid Selighi: Researcher in chemistry at Ibn Zohr University in Agadir.
Mohamed Berrada: Researcher in computer sciences from the University of Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdallah in Fez.
Amine Belhadi is a researcher in decision-making sciences from the International University of Rabat.
Zuhair Ibn Khaldoun: Researcher in Earth and Planetary Sciences from Cadi Ayyad University in Marrakech.
Amin Al-Lahi: Researcher in energy from the University of Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdallah in Fez.
Abderrahim Waqif: Researcher in engineering from Hassan II University in Casablanca.
Mostafa Benzazou: Researcher in environmental sciences from Mohammed VI University of Applied Arts.
Ahmed Aziz Bousfiha: Researcher in immunology and microbiology from Hassan II University.
Abdelkader Zarrouk: Researcher in materials sciences from Mohammed V University in Rabat.
Zakia Hammouche: A researcher in mathematics from Moulay Ismail University.
Amina Barakat: Researcher in medicine from Mohammed V University in Rabat.
Saadia Bamhamed is a researcher in neuroscience from Cadi Ayyad University.
Roquia Belhassen: Researcher in Nursing from Chouaib Doukkali University.
Yahya Charrah: Researcher in pharmacology, toxicology and pharmacology from Mohammed V University in Rabat.
Yahya Al Tailati: Researcher in Physics and Astronomy from Mohammed V University in Rabat.
Researcher Yahya Al-Tayalati, winner in the field of physics and astronomy, said - in an interview with Al-Jazeera Net over the phone - "I am honored to be one of the winners of this first edition, and this honorable distinction is a recognition of the work and collective effort implemented within the framework of partnerships and large-scale projects with an international dimension, in which researchers participated. And Moroccan students are really young and distinguished.”
Researcher Rashid Salaghi, the winner in the field of chemistry, indicates - in an interview with Al Jazeera Net over the phone - that this award for him is "a mandate rather than an honor. Given the stakes entrusted to scientific research, this coronation becomes a major responsibility in moving forward on the path of progress that It is, of course, the desire of our entire nation." He adds that "Morocco today is looking for the highest ranks among the major countries, and it will not be satisfied with appearing only, so our main task is diligent excellence to raise the level of scientific research to the highest levels."
As for Zuhair bin Khaldoun, the winning researcher in the field of Earth and planetary sciences, he said - in an interview with Al Jazeera Net over the phone - that "this recognition crowns the efforts of more than 30 years of scientific research in a field that is almost unknown in Morocco, despite all the difficulties it faces. Astronomy and astrophysics, so it's a source of pride for me, my co-workers, and my students."
Indicators of the development of Moroccan scientific production
During the award ceremony, the outcome of the project related to correcting the affiliation of scientific publications of Moroccan universities in the bibliographic databases, a project included in the 2018-2022 strategy of the National Center for Scientific and Technical Research, was presented by the Moroccan Institute for Scientific and Technical Information of the Center.
The implementation of this project has led to promising results in terms of the international presence of Moroccan universities, whether at the level of the Scopus bibliographic database or “Web of Science”, and a large number of scientific publications that did not appear in the university’s balance were retrieved. The percentage of publications reached 91% for Sultan Moulay Suleiman University, 74% for Sidi Mohamed bin Abdullah University, and 53% for Hassan II University.
The results of a study on scientific production in Morocco carried out by the Elsevier Foundation were also presented at this ceremony. The results of the study showed that Moroccan scientific production moved from 6,796 publications in 2017, to 11,275 publications in 2022, a growth rate of 66%. The year 2019 was a milestone year, in which the scientific production exceeded that of Tunisia and Algeria, to maintain this progress until 2021.
According to the same study, the total number of Moroccan researchers reached 37,980, and Morocco witnessed a growth in the number of researchers, as it moved from 11,066 researchers in 2017 to 17,414 researchers in 2021, a growth rate of 57.4%, which is the highest growth rate compared to Algeria. (36%) and Tunisia (7.9%).
With regard to the fields of scientific research, Moroccan scientific publications are distributed around the various fields of research classified in Scopus in varying proportions. Engineering, computer science and mathematics are the most representative fields in terms of the number of publications, while physics, astronomy, and earth and planetary sciences are the most influential fields.
As for international cooperation, the publications completed by Moroccans with foreign researchers accounted for 37.1% of the total Moroccan publications, and at a similar rate, publications completed within the framework of institutional cooperation constituted 34.1%, while publications within the framework of national cooperation constituted 25.5%. The most important partners of Moroccan researchers hail from France, although these researches are less influential in view of the martyrdom effect index.
The study also indicated that most Moroccan scientific publications focus on sustainable development goals, including the sixth goal of clean water and hygiene, the seventh goal, clean energy at reasonable prices, the eleventh goal, sustainable cities and societies, the twelfth goal, responsible consumption and production, and the second goal to eradicate hunger. .
Finally, the results of the study indicated that the universities of Mohammed V, Qadi Ayyad and Hassan II are among the most prominent universities that have scientific publications that contribute to the goals of sustainable development.
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