Driss Benhima
Encyclopedia
Driss Benhima is the Chairman of the Board
and CEO of Royal Air Maroc
, the national airline of Morocco
.
(OCP), Moroccan state-owned phosphate
world leader, as a junior field engineer in Khouribga
.
After the first 6 years he spent there, he became Mining Facilities Manager.
He was appointed in 1990 CEO of Casablanca
-based Société Marocaine d'Oxygène
et d'Acétylène
, Moroccan subsidiary of Air Liquide
group, world leader in industrial gases. On 19 March 1994, he was appointed CEO of
Office National de l'Electricité (ONE), Morocco's national power authority.
He has notably tackled the issue of insufficient access to electricity in rural communities.
The global rural electrification program's objective was to generalize access before 2010.
His successor Ahmed Nakkouch pushed further the initiative: the program is due to reach its target in 2007. During his CEO mandate, he has been a member of the transition government led by Dr. Abdellatif Filali
(between August 1997 and March 1998) in preparation of the Alternance, the Socialist Union of Popular Forces
and socialist Abderrahmane Youssoufi coming to power.
Benhima was then Minister of Transport, Energy, Tourism, Mining and Merchant Navy.
From July 2001 to 26 March 2004, Mr Benhima assumed the office of Governor of the Wilaya of Great Casablanca
.
He was appointed Director of the Agency for the Promotion and the Economic and Social Development of the Northern Prefectures and Provinces of the Moroccan Kingdom (APDN) in March 2004.
's CEO by King Mohammed VI
on 15 February 2006.
, he obtained a scientific Baccalauréat
in 1971. He then joined Lycée Sainte-Geneviève in Versailles
where he successfully prepared engineering schools entry exams.
He graduated with engineering degrees from the École Polytechnique
in 1978 (X1974, Major among foreign applicants) with last year's specialisation at the École des Mines de Paris
.
He was honoured with the Morrocan Order of the Throne
(Commander).
He has represented Morroco during the 1994 General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
(GATT) meetings in Marrakech
(the Marrakesh Agreement transformed the GATT into the World Trade Organization).
Between 1995 and 1999, he was member of the G14, a think tank
established by King Hassan II.
In 1999, Hassan II assigned to Benhima the promotion of the Moroccan bid to host the 2006 FIFA World Cup
.
Mr Benhima has launched a cinema club during his time in Khouribga
and wrote film interpretation essays. He is currently a member of the board of directors of the Marrakech International Film Festival Foundation.
He is the president of Hawd Assafi, Safi
-based non-profit organization (حوض ٱسفي).
Chair (official)
The chairman is the highest officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office is typically elected or appointed by the members of the group. The chairman presides over meetings of the assembled group and conducts its business in an...
and CEO of Royal Air Maroc
Royal Air Maroc
Royal Air Maroc is the flag carrier airline of Morocco, headquartered on the grounds of Casablanca-Anfa Airport in Casablanca...
, the national airline of Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
.
Career
Benhima joined Office Cherifien des PhosphatesOffice Cherifien des Phosphates
Office Chérifien des Phosphates is the national Moroccan phosphates company. It is the world's biggest exporter of phosphates and derivatives. The company is solely responsible for the production and sale of Moroccan phosphate resources, mined at the Benguérir, Khouribga, Youssoufia mines in...
(OCP), Moroccan state-owned phosphate
Phosphate
A phosphate, an inorganic chemical, is a salt of phosphoric acid. In organic chemistry, a phosphate, or organophosphate, is an ester of phosphoric acid. Organic phosphates are important in biochemistry and biogeochemistry or ecology. Inorganic phosphates are mined to obtain phosphorus for use in...
world leader, as a junior field engineer in Khouribga
Khouribga
Khouribga is a city in Khouribga Province in the Chaouia-Ouardigha region of Morocco with a population of approximately 172,000. Khouribga owes its growth to the phosphate deposits nearby.-Geography:...
.
After the first 6 years he spent there, he became Mining Facilities Manager.
He was appointed in 1990 CEO of Casablanca
Casablanca
Casablanca is a city in western Morocco, located on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Grand Casablanca region.Casablanca is Morocco's largest city as well as its chief port. It is also the biggest city in the Maghreb. The 2004 census recorded a population of 2,949,805 in the prefecture...
-based Société Marocaine d'Oxygène
Oxygen
Oxygen is the element with atomic number 8 and represented by the symbol O. Its name derives from the Greek roots ὀξύς and -γενής , because at the time of naming, it was mistakenly thought that all acids required oxygen in their composition...
et d'Acétylène
Acetylene
Acetylene is the chemical compound with the formula C2H2. It is a hydrocarbon and the simplest alkyne. This colorless gas is widely used as a fuel and a chemical building block. It is unstable in pure form and thus is usually handled as a solution.As an alkyne, acetylene is unsaturated because...
, Moroccan subsidiary of Air Liquide
Air Liquide
L'Air Liquide S.A., or Air Liquide , is a major French company supplying industrial gases and services to various industries including medical, chemical and electronic manufacturers. Founded in 1902, it is first in the world market in its field, now operating in over 80 countries. It is...
group, world leader in industrial gases. On 19 March 1994, he was appointed CEO of
Office National de l'Electricité (ONE), Morocco's national power authority.
He has notably tackled the issue of insufficient access to electricity in rural communities.
The global rural electrification program's objective was to generalize access before 2010.
His successor Ahmed Nakkouch pushed further the initiative: the program is due to reach its target in 2007. During his CEO mandate, he has been a member of the transition government led by Dr. Abdellatif Filali
Abdellatif Filali
Dr. Abdellatif Filali was a Moroccan politician and diplomat under King Hassan II.Filali was born in Beni Mellal, Morocco. He served as Prime Minister of Morocco from 25 May 1994 to 4 February 1998...
(between August 1997 and March 1998) in preparation of the Alternance, the Socialist Union of Popular Forces
Socialist Union of Popular Forces
The Socialist Union of Popular Forces, USFP, is a social democratic political party in Morocco...
and socialist Abderrahmane Youssoufi coming to power.
Benhima was then Minister of Transport, Energy, Tourism, Mining and Merchant Navy.
From July 2001 to 26 March 2004, Mr Benhima assumed the office of Governor of the Wilaya of Great Casablanca
Grand Casablanca
Grand Casablanca is one of sixteen administrative regions of Morocco. Located in coastal north western Morocco, it is the most densely populated region and covers an area of 1,615 km.² The population at the 2010 census was 7,500,000...
.
He was appointed Director of the Agency for the Promotion and the Economic and Social Development of the Northern Prefectures and Provinces of the Moroccan Kingdom (APDN) in March 2004.
RAM Appointment
He was appointed to the position of Royal Air MarocRoyal Air Maroc
Royal Air Maroc is the flag carrier airline of Morocco, headquartered on the grounds of Casablanca-Anfa Airport in Casablanca...
's CEO by King Mohammed VI
Mohammed VI of Morocco
Mohammed VI is the present King of Morocco and Amir al-Mu'minin . He ascended to the throne on 23 July 1999 upon the death of his father.-Education:...
on 15 February 2006.
Education
After secondary studies at Lycée Descartes (French-system college) in RabatRabat
Rabat , is the capital and third largest city of the Kingdom of Morocco with a population of approximately 650,000...
, he obtained a scientific Baccalauréat
Baccalauréat
The baccalauréat , often known in France colloquially as le bac, is an academic qualification which French and international students take at the end of the lycée . It was introduced by Napoleon I in 1808. It is the main diploma required to pursue university studies...
in 1971. He then joined Lycée Sainte-Geneviève in Versailles
Versailles
Versailles , a city renowned for its château, the Palace of Versailles, was the de facto capital of the kingdom of France for over a century, from 1682 to 1789. It is now a wealthy suburb of Paris and remains an important administrative and judicial centre...
where he successfully prepared engineering schools entry exams.
He graduated with engineering degrees from the École Polytechnique
École Polytechnique
The École Polytechnique is a state-run institution of higher education and research in Palaiseau, Essonne, France, near Paris. Polytechnique is renowned for its four year undergraduate/graduate Master's program...
in 1978 (X1974, Major among foreign applicants) with last year's specialisation at the École des Mines de Paris
École nationale supérieure des mines de Paris
The École Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Paris was created in 1783 by King Louis XVI in order to train intelligent directors of mines. It is one of the most prominent French engineering schoolsThe École Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Paris (also known as Mines ParisTech, École des Mines de...
.
Miscellaneous
Benhima was born on 28 May 1954.He was honoured with the Morrocan Order of the Throne
Order of the Throne
The Order of the Throne is a state decoration of the Kingdom of Morocco awarded for distinguished services of a civil or military nature...
(Commander).
He has represented Morroco during the 1994 General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade was negotiated during the UN Conference on Trade and Employment and was the outcome of the failure of negotiating governments to create the International Trade Organization . GATT was signed in 1947 and lasted until 1993, when it was replaced by the World...
(GATT) meetings in Marrakech
Marrakech
Marrakech or Marrakesh , known as the "Ochre city", is the most important former imperial city in Morocco's history...
(the Marrakesh Agreement transformed the GATT into the World Trade Organization).
Between 1995 and 1999, he was member of the G14, a think tank
Think tank
A think tank is an organization that conducts research and engages in advocacy in areas such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, and technology issues. Most think tanks are non-profit organizations, which some countries such as the United States and Canada provide with tax...
established by King Hassan II.
In 1999, Hassan II assigned to Benhima the promotion of the Moroccan bid to host the 2006 FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
.
Mr Benhima has launched a cinema club during his time in Khouribga
Khouribga
Khouribga is a city in Khouribga Province in the Chaouia-Ouardigha region of Morocco with a population of approximately 172,000. Khouribga owes its growth to the phosphate deposits nearby.-Geography:...
and wrote film interpretation essays. He is currently a member of the board of directors of the Marrakech International Film Festival Foundation.
He is the president of Hawd Assafi, Safi
Safi, Morocco
Safi is a city in western Morocco on the Atlantic Ocean. The capital of the Doukkala-Abda Region, it has a population of 282,227 , but is also the centre of an agglomeration which has an estimated 793,000 inhabitants ....
-based non-profit organization (حوض ٱسفي).
External links
- Sa Majesté le Roi reçoit Son Altesse Royale le Prince Al Walid Ibn Talal Ibn Abdelaziz Al Saoud et le PDG de la RAM, Le Matin du Sahara, November, 9th 2011
- http://www.jeuneafrique.com/Article/ARTJAJA2546p040-041.xml3/-RAM-Driss-Benhima-PDG-Driss-Benhima.html« Les 50 personnalités qui font le Maroc : Driss Benhima. 55 ans, PDG de Royal Air Maroc », Jeune AfriqueJeune AfriqueJeune Afrique is a weekly newsmagazine published in Paris, founded in Tunis by Béchir Ben Yahmed on October 17, 1960. It covers the political, economic and cultural spheres of Africa, with an emphasis on Francophone Africa and the Maghreb....
, nb.2545-2546, du 18 au 31 octobre 2009, p. 41] - http://www.aujourdhui.ma/thematiques-economiques-details47703.htmlBenhima, president of École PolytechniqueÉcole PolytechniqueThe École Polytechnique is a state-run institution of higher education and research in Palaiseau, Essonne, France, near Paris. Polytechnique is renowned for its four year undergraduate/graduate Master's program...
alumni community in MoroccoMoroccoMorocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
] - Congres de la Conference des Grandes Ecoles, Rabat, December, 15th 2008
- Allal-El-Alaoui's blog "Cinephilia of an engineer called Driss Benhima"