Morocco - Mind the Gap : Empowering Women for a More Open, Inclusive and Prosperous Society
This report is about women in Morocco who continue to face obstacles in social, economic, and political participation. These obstacles are a result of discriminatory legislative frameworks, social norms that restrict legal rights, and limited econo...
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| Language: | English en_US |
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World Bank, Washington, DC
2016
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2016/03/26048222/morocco-mind-gap-empowering-women-more-open-inclusive-prosperous-society http://hdl.handle.net/10986/24004 |
| Summary: | This report is about women in Morocco
who continue to face obstacles in social, economic, and
political participation. These obstacles are a result of
discriminatory legislative frameworks, social norms that
restrict legal rights, and limited economic participation.
Women’s economic participation in Morocco was at 26 percent
which is among the lowest in the world, and has not changed
since 1990. The ultimate objective is to promote women’s
empowerment as a means to achieve a more inclusive, open,
and prosperous society. This report is arranged as follows
:(a) chapter one will present the progress thus far and the
remaining important challenges for women in Morocco.; (b)
chapters two and three focus on economic empowerment and
employment outcomes and on the remaining legislative and or
social discrimination that continue to restrict women agency
in chapter four; and (c) chapter five will conclude by
presenting some key areas of strategic intervention for the
government and other development actors which are not only
of greater potential impact but also a prerequisite for
women’s agency and empowerment. The main findings in the
report are as follows: (i) unequal access to education and
resources continue to hinder women’s human development
progress; (ii) gender segregation in terms of employment is
pervasive, with women mostly working in low productivity
sectors; (iii) demographic factors and social norms also
affect women’s decisions to join the labor force; (iv) only
fifteen percent of women in urban areas are employed,
against sixty two percent of men, and this gap has remained
virtually unchanged in the past; (vi) there is a substantial
wage gap between men and women, even when controlling for
education and professions; and (vii) traditional
explanations for Female Labor Force Participation (FLFP)
long-term trends account only partially for Morocco’s
observed outcomes. Agency has a role, often a strong one, in
contributing to women’s human development and economic
opportunities, and opening opportunities for greater
participation in social and political life. Despite
important reforms, gaps remain in the legal framework,
negatively impacting economic, social, and political
development for women. The main conclusions and
recommendations are follows: (a) much has been done but much
remains to be done to improve women’s access to economic
opportunities and individual empowerment; (b) women can
actively contribute to Morocco’s economic growth only if the
remaining barriers that still prevent women from working in
high productivity sectors are removed; (c) removing
regulatory barriers and easing the access to credit for
female entrepreneurs is key to creating more jobs; (d)
further reforms of the Labor code could be designed taking
into account specific obstacles to women’s economic
participation; (e) government action to level the playing
field across the lifecycle would strengthen women’s
opportunities and ultimately socio-economic outcomes; (f)
the Goverment of Morocco (GoM) has taken considerable steps
in closing gender equality gaps in law, but action is needed
to ensure consistency throughout legislative frameworks; and
(g) mainstreaming gender into policy action is key to
achieving gender equality and women empowerment. |
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