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Rabat – In a recent report titled “World Risk Poll 2024 Report: Resilience in a Changing World,” the Lloyd’s Register Foundation sheds light on the impact of Morocco’s September 2023 earthquake on public resilience.
The poll reveals significant declines in personal and household resilience across the country, reflecting the broader social and psychological toll of the disaster.
The September 9, 2023 earthquake, which struck with a magnitude of 6.8 in the Atlas Mountains southwest of Marrakesh, was Morocco’s most powerful in over a century.
According to the Center for Disaster Philanthropy, around 380,000 people were directly affected by the quake, with the national death toll nearing 3,000.
As detailed in the report, this rare event, which devastated local infrastructure, profoundly affected public perception and sense of agency in Morocco.
The World Risk Poll, a biennial survey examining global resilience and risk perception, noted that Morocco’s experience with this seismic event was a critical factor in altering national resilience levels.
The report highlighted that in 2021, only 23% of Moroccans reported experiencing any disaster within the past five years, with most citing floods, droughts, or wildfires.
However, in 2023, following the earthquake, 59% of respondents reported experiencing a disaster—87% of whom mentioned the earthquake specifically. This shift reflects the shock effect of such a rare and catastrophic event.
“Analyzing Morocco’s experience allows us to understand the complex relationship between rare disasters and shifts in resilience,” the report states. “It’s a reminder of how experiencing an unprecedented event can reshape public perception and diminish a sense of personal control in facing future challenges.”
Morocco’s Resilience Index score dropped by seven points between 2021 and 2023, one of the largest declines observed globally. While community and societal resilience remained steady, individual and household resilience fell by 16 and 11 points, respectively.
According to the poll, only 23% of Moroccans now believe they have the ability to protect themselves or their families from future disasters, down from 52% in 2021.
This drop in self-assessed agency is even more striking among those directly affected by the earthquake, with only 19% expressing a sense of preparedness.
The report draws attention to the potential long-term consequences of these shifts.
“Morocco’s experience raises an important question for policymakers,” the report says. “If disasters of this scale erode people’s sense of agency and preparedness, how can they restore public confidence alongside rebuilding physical infrastructure?”
Interestingly, the survey also noted a rise in collective action post-disaster. Charitable giving among Moroccans surged from 2% in 2022 to 18% in 2023, suggesting a communal response to the crisis despite individual challenges.
This data from Morocco provides a compelling case study within the broader global context, as countries like Pakistan and New Zealand have also experienced shifts in resilience after natural disasters.
In Pakistan and New Zealand, where floods recently impacted large populations, the community and societal resilience dropped sharply, but individual and household resilience remained stable, a pattern contrasting with Morocco’s experience.
