Chairperson of Morocco’s National Human Rights Council, Ms Amina Bouayach, will be honored during the celebration of the 29th North-South Prize of the Council of Europe award ceremony, on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, in Lisbon, Portugal. She will receive the 2023 prestigious North-South Prize, and address the ceremony, at the Portuguese Parliament.

The Prize will be presented by H.E President of the Portuguese Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, and President of the Portuguese Assembly of the Republic, José Pedro Aguiar-Branco.

First Moroccan woman and third Moroccan figure to win the North South Prize (after His Majesty's advisor, Mr. André Azoulay, and the late former Prime Minister, Mr. Abderrahmane Youssoufi), Ms Bouayach was awarded the prize in “recognition of her commitment to the promotion of Human Rights, gender equality and the prevention of torture on a regional and continental levels”. The Prize, as announced in January 2024, aimed as well to “recognize Ms. Bouayach´s engagement in political advocacy for the abolition of death penalty, as well as her work to reinforce both civil society structures in the Mediterranean region and North-South cooperation based on common democratic values.”

The Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Bjørn Berge, as well as the Chair of the Executive Committee of the North-South Centre, Ambassador Francesca Camilleri Vettiger, will also take part in award ceremony.

The North-South Prize is awarded each year since 1995 to two candidates (activists, personalities or organisations) who have stood out for their exceptional commitment to promoting North-South solidarity.