The inclusion of rural women in Morocco could generate an economic gain of MAD 25.3 billion, the High Commissioner for Planning Chakib Benmoussa said on Tuesday in Rabat.
This profit represents 2.2% of gross domestic product (GDP), Benmoussa stated at a conference-debate on the theme “Empowering Women in Morocco: Understanding the challenges to take better action”, organized by the High Commission for Planning (HCP), in partnership with UN Women and with the support of the European Union (EU) delegation.
He mentioned that women in rural areas are, however, subject to unpaid employment, poor access to health and education services, as well as difficulties in securing property and financing.
This conference-debate, dedicated to presenting the results of three studies carried out by the HCP on the empowerment of women and their integration into the labor market, was also an opportunity for the High Commissioner to point out that the New Development Model has underlined gender equality as a matter of equity and social justice, but also a powerful driver of growth and development.
This issue, he continued, is also enshrined in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with a dedicated objective -ODD 5- which aims in particular to eradicate discrimination against women, recognize and value unpaid work, and guarantee women's full and effective participation in the political, economic and social spheres.
In this regard, Benmoussa noted that recent statistics from the 2024 General Census of Population and Housing (RGPH) (included in the collection “Moroccan Women in Figures”) showcases a contrasting image of Moroccan women's progress and ongoing challenges.
For his part, Head of the European Union's (EU) Deputy Delegation to the Kingdom of Morocco Daniele Dotto noted that Morocco has achieved remarkable progress in empowering women, particularly in terms of access to education and health, but that certain challenges remain, as evidenced by the drop in women's participation rate in the labor market to 19.1% in 2024, according to the HCP.
A number of initiatives are currently underway in this area, emphasizing the importance of harmonizing the legal framework with international and constitutional commitments in order to eliminate existing discriminatory provisions, as well as the ongoing reform of the Family Code.
UN Women's representative in Morocco Myriem Noussairi echoed this view, noting that the Kingdom has made significant progress in terms of equality, and that further efforts are needed to bridge the inequalities limiting women's access to the labor market, financing and entrepreneurship.
As part of the meeting's panels, decision-makers, experts and researchers debated the challenges of women's economic inclusion, exchanged views on the results of the studies mentioned, and deepened their understanding of the dynamics at play.
