Labor Force Participation

Labor force participation among Moroccan women is extremely low, particularly when compared to that of men: 69% of men work for pay, compared to only  10% of women. Arabic-speaking women, unmarried women, and urban women all somewhat more likely to work than their respective counterparts, but even among these groups labor force participation is quite low by international standards.

Low labor force participation cannot be entirely attributed to preferences of women themselves: fully 84% of young women surveyed indicated that they intended to or already were pursuing a career. Although this question was asked only of respondents under age 25, even among this ambitious age group only 10% of women currently work.