Rabat – On the occasion of National Women’s Day celebrated on October 10, the High Commission for Planning (HCP) published a report on the situation of Moroccan women.
The document, entitled “The Moroccan Woman in Figures: 20 years of progress,” is a collection of statistical data that traces the evolution of the situation of Moroccan women over the past two decades in several areas.
In 2020, women represent a little more than half (50.2%) of the country’s population, meaning 18,045,000 female citizens, compared to 15,039,000 in 2004.
One of the areas of interest highlighted in the report was the unfortunate reality of violence against women.
Despite great progress in the area of women’s rights in the country, violence against women persists.
According to the report, 57% of women were at some point, shape or form, victims of an act of violence in 2019.
The prevalence of economic and sexual violence has significantly increased, going from 8% to 15% and from 9% to 14% respectively between 2009 and 2019.
Violence against women and girls continues to be perpetrated mainly within the marital and family environment with a prevalence of 52.1%, followed by the educational environment with a rate of 18.9% and the professional environment (15.4%).
In public spaces, the prevalence of violence perpetrated against Moroccan women is 12.6%.
The most common psychological consequences of physical and sexual violence are feelings of nervousness, frustration, and anxiety.
Some victims also reported sleep disorders and a feeling of permanent fatigue, according to a 2020 survey by the HCP.
The year 2020 came with serious concerns of a possible increase in violence against women due to state mandated quarantine.
But in July of this year, Morocco’s General Directory of National Security (DGSN) reported a decline of 11% in violence against women in 2020 compared to 2019.
Despite the DGSN’s announcement, violence against women did in fact increase during the COVID confinement period, only few victims were able to report their aggressors to the police, according to many women’s rights NGOs such as the Masaktach (I will not be silent) collective.
