Abderrahmane Youssoufi

Abderrahmane Youssoufi (عبد الرحمن اليوسفي) (born March 8, 1924) is a Moroccan politician who served as the Prime Minister of Morocco from 1998 to 2002.

Early life

Born in Tangier, Abderrahmane Youssoufi was a socialist from a young age, dedicating himself to organizing the working class of Casablanca as early as 1944. In 1949, Youssoufi began also to fight for the rights of emigrant Moroccan workers in France.

He also studied law, practicing in Tangier from 1952 to 1960.

Political career

In 1959, Youssoufi joined the National Union of Popular Forces, a left-wing political party. He was arrested for his involvement in 1959, and again in 1963, the latter arrest leading to a prison sentence of two years. Following his release, Youssoufi went into self-imposed exile in Paris for a period of fifteen years.

Meanwhile, the National Union of Popular Forces became the Socialist Union of Popular Forces. In 1980, Youssoufi returned to join the new party, becoming the party secretary in 1992.

Prime Minister

In March 1998, King Hassan II named Youssoufi the Prime Minister of Morocco, a post he held until October 2002. In 2003, Youssoufi announced his retirement from politics.

Awards

In 1999 he was one of the two winners of the North-South Prize.

References

• This article is based in part on the Abderrahman El Yousoufi in the French Wikipedia, accessed October 1, 2005.