HIBAPRESS – W.A.M.
On the occasion of International Women's Day, the Economic, Social and Environmental Council highlights a key point of vigilance in its latest annual report for the year 2024, concerning the integration of women into public life and their strategic role in development.
The Council stated, in a statement, that the Kingdom of Morocco, under the enlightened leadership of King Mohammed VI, has initiated structural and voluntary reforms to enhance the status of women in society. The same source highlighted that these gains were embodied in consolidating the principle of equality and the commitment to strive to achieve the principle of parity under the 2011 constitution, adopting legal frameworks that enhance the protection of women's rights, and establishing institutional mechanisms and strategies aimed at improving their conditions. These gains have contributed to a profound transformation in the national normative and institutional framework, but it is noted, through monitoring and follow-up, that the updated data reveal the continued widening of the gap between the rights enshrined, constitutionally and legally, and their full and complete effectiveness in the daily lives of women. Important female potentials are not valued enough. The Council's annual report for 2024 points to a paradox worthy of analysis; Although the educational level of women is experiencing steady development, especially in the scientific and technical fields, their economic integration remains limited. The economic activity rate for women reached only 19.1 percent, compared to 68.6 percent for men. The unemployment rate among women also reached 19.4 percent, especially among holders of higher degrees, where 33.5 percent of them remain without work. In addition, wage gaps persist, with the average wage gap between men and women in the private sector reaching 23 percent, and exceeding 40 percent in some socio-professional categories. Also, more than half of the female employees receive a salary less than the legal minimum wage. This, while a quarter of active women work without pay, often within a family or informal framework. This economic fragility is exacerbated by a double domestic burden, as women spend on average more than 5 hours a day on housework, compared to less than an hour for men, which limits their readiness to enter the labor market, their involvement in associations and their participation in politics. In addition to these imbalances, there is a weakness in the representation of women at the level of decision-making positions, as their presence remains limited within elected institutions, in decision-making responsibilities, and at the level of governance bodies, at both the national and territorial levels. Structural obstacles require voluntary mobilization. The Economic, Social and Environmental Council notes that the obstacles that prevent the full and effective integration of women are still in place and multi-dimensional; they are rooted in discriminatory social practices, an unequal distribution of roles, a fragmented institutional organization, as well as a lack of appropriate support services. The accumulation of these factors leads to a noticeable disparity between capabilities and achievements; Although Moroccan women achieve outstanding academic results, they face difficulties in accessing qualified jobs and positions of responsibility. For example, girls record a numerical presence in the scientific and technical fields; they constitute 56 percent of the students enrolled in university training in the scientific tracks and 42.2 percent in engineering schools, but the phenomenon of what can be called "the gradual dropout of women" emerges throughout their academic and professional career. The higher we go in the scientific or functional hierarchy, the less the presence of women in senior positions, which limits the effective use of their competencies. Some prevailing mentalities still hinder the economic liberation of women. About two-thirds of the respondents in a study conducted by the World Bank in 2024 in the Kingdom imagine that financial responsibilities rest on men, while women should devote themselves to domestic burdens. These representations, which women themselves often succumb to, limit their independence and affect their life and career choices. On the other hand, the care economy, despite its great potential in creating job opportunities and promoting equality, remains a sector that is not valued enough. Women still bear the bulk of unpaid care work, whether for children, the elderly, or people in a state of dependency, without any recognition or social protection, which exacerbates their mental burden and limits their active participation in economic and public life. The weak participation of women is an important loss that the country must remedy. According to recent estimates issued by the High Commission for Planning, raising the participation rate of women in the active population by 9 percentage points could lead to an increase of 3 percent in the gross domestic product by 2035. The annual cost of not employing or paying women of working age is estimated at about 25.3 billion dirhams, according to the High Commission for Planning, which highlights the urgent nature, socially and economically, to engage with determination in efforts to remove these obstacles.
Working to establish equality that effectively responds to the challenges of development. In order to promote the full and complete integration of women and consolidate gender equality, the Council emphasizes the adoption of a comprehensive approach that integrates social, economic and cultural dimensions. This dynamic should be based on the progress made in this area, especially through the project of revising the Family Code and the new government plan for equality (2023-2026) in order to develop an ambitious national roadmap with clear goals, based on multi-sectoral governance that mobilizes all actors and stakeholders. In this context, the Economic, Social and Environmental Council proposes a number of recommendations, the most prominent of which is to set an ambitious and agreed-upon goal on the economic participation of women, in order to raise the rate of women's activity by 45 percent by 2035, in line with the orientations of the new development model. This goal should be a basic basis for guiding public policies and coordinating between them. It also proposes the preparation of an integrated program to promote the work of women and support it with careful follow-up at the national and regional levels, based on two axes: strengthening supply by strengthening women's capabilities, and developing vocational training programs, and developing appropriate services that enable them to reconcile private life and professional life, by providing nurseries and kindergartens, providing safe transportation, and adopting flexible working hours, taking into account the specifics of the rural environment and the suburbs of cities; and stimulating demand, by supporting the creation of job opportunities for women, and setting incentives that aim to encourage companies to employ the largest number of women, especially within the framework of the new investment charter. The recommendations also included professionalizing the activities of caring for and assisting individuals, by recognizing them legally, and developing qualifying training programs for workers in them, and guaranteeing their social rights, and integrating these activities within the territorial employment strategies, as was also stated in greater detail in the opinion of the Economic, Social and Environmental Council on “The Care Economy in Morocco: Stakes of Sectoral Recognition and Institutional Organization”. The Economic, Social and Environmental Council also urged the establishment of a national wage equality index, which can measure the differences between women and men according to each sector and territorial area, in order to reduce these differences, especially in large companies, as well as adopting gradual and structured quotas to enhance the representation of women in leadership positions in scientific, academic and economic fields.
