Wafira Expands as 17,807 Moroccan Women Join Seasonal Work in Spain

Doha – A groundbreaking Spanish-Moroccan initiative, the Wafira – the Arabic word for abundance – program, has concluded its first phase with 209 successful women entrepreneurs.

At the same time, the program significantly announced the recruitment of 17,807 seasonal workers for 2025, including 4,335 newcomers, officials announced in Rabat on Friday.

Spanish Minister of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, Elma Saiz, along with Moroccan Minister of Economic Inclusion and Employment, Younes Sekkouri, and EU Ambassador to Morocco, Patricia Llombart, presided over the closing ceremony of the program’s first phase in Rabat.

The Wafira project, launched in 2022 and funded by the European Union in collaboration with the International Labor Organization (ILO), has provided entrepreneurship training to 600 Moroccan women during their seasonal work in Spain.

Of these participants, 209 have successfully established their own businesses upon returning to Morocco.

The enterprises launched by the program’s beneficiaries span various sectors, including banana cultivation, plant nurseries, butcher shops, clothing stores, and honey production.

Each successful participant received a grant of €2,500 to establish their business.

The program specifically targets women from the regions of Rabat-Salé-Kénitra and Tangier-Tetouan-Al Hoceima.

Participants receive 21 hours of training in personal skills and entrepreneurship while working in Huelva, southern Spain, complemented by integration activities.

During the ceremony, one of the fifteen women who shared their experiences described how the program enabled her to open a flower shop.

“I didn’t consider it before due to lack of time and childcare responsibilities,” she said, adding, “When Wafira contacted me and asked what I wanted to do, I told them I love flowers. Now I’ve achieved my goal and hope to progress further.”

Spain recruits 17,807 Moroccan women for 2025 agricultural season. Photo by MWN

Minister Saiz announced that the program will enter a second phase, expanding to include France, Portugal, Cape Verde, and Mauritania, with continued support from the EU and ILO.

The initiative aims to enable participants to leverage their international experience to acquire technical skills in strategic sectors and become “agents of change capable of generating employment” in Morocco.

The broader seasonal workers program, managed through Spain’s Collective Management of Hiring at Origin (GECCO), has seen increasing numbers in recent years, with approximately 19,000 workers in 2023 and over 20,000 in 2024.

Under this framework, workers receive a four-year multi-annual authorization allowing them to work nine months per calendar year in a single labor sector under fixed-discontinuous contracts.

EU-funded initiative expands to include France, Portugal in next phase. Photo by MWN

The Moroccan Minister Sekkouri emphasized that the project “goes beyond its coherent content within our partnership with our Spanish friends” and aims to “give meaning to migration and professional mobility.”

The first group of workers for the 2025 season departed from the Port of Tangier last week, attended by Spanish Consul General Aurora Díaz Rato.

The program maintains strict return requirements, with workers required to return to Morocco immediately after completing their work period and provide proof of their return, typically as a group.

Coordinated by Andalusian Agri-food Cooperatives, the initiative represents a significant step in cross-Mediterranean collaboration, focusing on regulated migration while promoting economic development and women’s empowerment in rural areas.