On the occasion of Women’s National Day, the High Commission of Planning (HCP) released on Tuesday 10 a publication called “The Moroccan Woman in Figures 2023,” shedding light on the status of women in Morocco across various areas.
The figures suggest a continued prevalence of violence and unemployment among women, as well as a low representation of women in positions of authority and decision-making.
The report states that the unemployment rate among women in Morocco has seen a continuous surge, amounting to 17.2% by the year 2022, compared to 10.3% recorded by their male counterparts.
This disparity is further highlighted when considering women holding a higher education diploma, with an unemployment rate of 34.8% compared to 20.8% among men.
Women residing in urban areas and holding a higher education diploma recorded an unemployment rate of 33.7% compared to 18.3% among their male counterparts.
The recent figures also indicate that women with an average level of education have experienced an unemployment rate of 21.5% in 2022. In comparison, men with the same level of education have only recorded a 13% unemployment rate.
The unemployment disparities between the two gender groups in relation to age were also reported. For women aged 15 to 34 years, the unemployment rate stood at 32.7% by 2022. Men, on the contrary, witnessed an unemployment rate of 19.8% in the same age group.
The latest figures released by HCP also highlighted some disparities in employment rates between men and women. For the employment rate for those aged 15 and over, men are found to record 62.4% compared to their female counterparts reaching only 16.4%.
Shockingly, the figures for holding a higher education diploma recorded 28.7% in the employment rate. Men with the same level, in contrast, recorded a 53.4% employment rate.
As for women’s representation in positions of authority, the figures for 2021 further highlighted gender disparities, with women’s representation not exceeding 29.1% in the government, 24.3% in parliament, 39.8% in regional elections, and 29.8% in local elections.
Gender disparities in educational attainment were also captured for the year 2022. Adults aged between 25 and above who have at least completed lower secondary education represented 30.8% of women, compared to 45.5% of men.
However, this disparity is further highlighted when considering women residing in urban areas, with an education attainment rate of 96.1%, compared to 47.6% among women residing in rural areas.
The percentage of people aged 15-24 who are literate was 95.4% among women and 97.9% among men.
The prevalence of violence against women in 2019 amounted to 56.5%, with 52.1% of that being domestic violence caused by family or spouses.
Unsurprisingly, women were found to spend 21% of their time on professional work compared to 79% on household work. Men, on the contrary, spend 12% of their time on household work and 88% on professional work.