Rabat – Morocco’s economy created 82,000 jobs by the end of the fourth quarter of 2024, according to the country’s Higher Commission of Planning (HCP).
This number encompasses a boost of 162,000 jobs in urban areas, and a decrease of 80,000 in rural areas.
In particular, 160,000 jobs were created in the service sector. These included 51,000 jobs in commerce, 44,000 in social services, and 39,000 in finance, insurance, real estate, scientific, technical, administrative and support services.
Additionally, the industry sector created 46,00 jobs, generating 35,000 in urban areas and 11,000 in rural areas.
Meanwhile, the construction sector generated 13,000 jobs, while agriculture, forestry and fishing sectors witnessed a decrease, losing 137,000 jobs.
Despite the boost in some sectors, the overall rate of unemployment rose from 13% to 13.3%, with urban areas inching from 16.8% to 16.9%, and rural areas from 6.3% to 6.8%.
HCP noted that the number of unemployed rose over the past year by 58,000 (4%) to reach 1.638 million, compared to 1.58 million last year.
This number reflects an additional 42,000 jobless Moroccans in urban areas and 16,000 in rural ones.
Unemployment rates remain high (36.7%) among youth between 15-24 years old, 19.6% among graduates, and 19.4% among women, according to the report.
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A lack of full potential
Even among those who are employed in Morocco, the HCP reported that many are not working to their full skill set or potential, employed with fewer hours, and/or not working in the roles they desire.
The rate of overall underemployment went from 9.8% to 10.1%, increasing from 1.043 million to 1.082 million. Urban areas witnessed an increase from 8.7% to 8.9% while rural areas saw a rise from 11.6% to 12.2%.
In terms of real numbers, underemployed people rose from 560,000 to 585,000 in urban areas, and 483,000 to 496,000 in rural areas.
The HCP also broke down the reasons for their underemployment. The number of underemployed people due to insufficient earnings or a mismatch between their education and their job, fell nationally to 531,000 (4.6%) in 2024, compared to 486,000 (5%) in 2023.
This is due to a decrease from 4.8% to 4.6% in urban areas and 5.4% to 4.5% in rural areas.
