Rabat – In an unprecedented move among North African and Middle-Eastern countries, the Moroccan parliamentary organization, Social Justice Group, has proposed a paid menstrual leave bill for the benefit of women who suffer from severe period pain.
Drafted by Said Chakir, Mustapha Bin Fakih, and Mustapha Al Dahmani, the proposed bill aims to grant female employees two days of menstrual leave every month, without needing to submit a medical certificate each time.
The bill takes into consideration the debilitating pain some women experience during menstruation, which can negatively impact their work and productivity.
The menstrual leave bill has sparked intense debate in Morocco, with several women and feminist activists supporting and praising the parliamentary group’s proposal. Others, however, rejected and criticized the proposal, arguing that it defies the premise of gender equality.
In May, Spain approved a draft law allowing a 3-day workplace leave per month for women who suffer from severe period pain, becoming the first European country to offer women menstrual leave.
Only a small number of countries offer paid menstrual leave, including South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Zambia, and Indonesia.
Read also: The Fight for Menstrual Justice in Rural Morocco
Last month, several Moroccan activists and women’s rights organizations launched a campaign concerning menstrual justice in Morocco, highlighting girls’ lack of access to menstrual hygiene products and the social stigma surrounding periods.
The campaign coincided with World Menstrual Hygiene Day, which takes place on May 2. Morocco celebrated the annual awareness day for the first time in 2021, seven years after German NGO WASH United initiated it.
Moroccan activists aim to raise awareness about menstrual health and challenge the stigma that surrounds it. Highlighting the struggles of young women, they argued that many Moroccan female adolescents do not have access to menstrual hygiene products or safe and private sanitation facilities at their schools.
While the approval of the bill in Morocco remains uncertain, the proposal itself constitutes a progressive move toward menstrual justice and gender equality.
