Marrakech – A new international survey has found that 84% of Moroccan adults support action to reduce methane emissions. Nearly half of respondents, 47%, are very concerned about climate change, while concern runs higher around more immediate environmental threats.
According to the poll, 54% are very concerned about poor water quality, the same share are worried about droughts, and 51% are very concerned about heat and heatwaves. The higher concern centers on conditions many Moroccans already encounter.
The Global Methane Hub (GMH), in collaboration with the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication (YCCC), commissioned the survey in Morocco and 17 other countries. The project set out to measure public awareness of climate change and methane and to track attitudes toward methane-reduction solutions.
The results arrive in the context of mounting climate stress. Extreme heat and water scarcity continue to weigh on communities and agriculture across the country. After years of prolonged drought, heavy rainfall during the winter of 2025-2026 helped replenish reservoirs and restore soil moisture.
The relief proved brief. This summer brought repeated heatwaves, with temperatures reaching as high as 50°C in some areas, roughly 12°C above seasonal norms. The heat intensified pressure on limited water resources, increased irrigation demand, and raised risks to agricultural production, food security, and public health.
Methane sits at the center of the survey because of how it behaves. It is a short-lived pollutant that is more than 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide, which makes cutting it the fastest route to lowering global temperatures. Reductions also carry public health and economic benefits.
Support spans agriculture, waste, and energy
Moroccan respondents backed methane cuts across the three sectors responsible for most human-caused emissions. Support reached 80% for agriculture, 85% for waste, and 86% for energy. Overall, the 84% who support methane action match the 84% who support broader climate action.
Respondents also named major industries, particularly oil and gas and waste management companies, as significant contributors to climate change. At the same time, they looked primarily to national and international governments as capable of driving solutions. 64% viewed national governments as very capable of meaningful action, and 63% said the same of international governments.
Other findings filled out the picture. Nearly three-quarters, 73%, believe climate change is caused by human activity. About half, 51%, are familiar with methane, up six percentage points since 2025, while 55% recognize its negative impact on the climate. Two-thirds, 67%, recognize the importance of reducing methane to limit climate change, and support for methane action held roughly steady at 84%, close to the 82% recorded in 2025.
Marcelo Mena, CEO of the Global Methane Hub, tied the results to conditions on the ground. Many Moroccans “recognize the importance of tackling powerful climate pollutants like methane” at a time when extreme heat and water scarcity are putting growing pressure on communities, according to Mena.
He pointed to the dairy sector as a practical model, where better feed and improved herd and manure management can cut methane while raising farmer productivity and incomes.
Laury Haytayan, Middle East and North Africa Director at the Natural Resource Governance Institute, read the findings as a call for shared responsibility. Moroccans “understand the urgency of addressing methane emissions and recognize the human contribution to climate change,” she noted.
She argued that communities can become partners in advancing stronger government policies and in ensuring they are carried out, and that a multi-stakeholder approach is essential to turning concern into results.
Anthony Leiserowitz, director of the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, framed the research as a tool for communication and policy. Understanding what people know and think is “essential to effective public communication and policymaking,” according to Leiserowitz, who added that the data helps identify knowledge gaps and strengthen campaigns.
The Moroccan results mirror a broader pattern. Across the 18 countries surveyed, 85% of respondents supported action to reduce methane pollution.
Support ran particularly high in Asia, Africa, and Latin America, reaching 94% in South Korea, 91% in Malaysia, 90% in China and Brazil, and 89% in Nigeria and South Africa. The more respondents reported experiencing climate impacts, the more they supported action.
The wider science underlines the stakes. Methane is responsible for roughly 30% of warming since preindustrial times, yet most of it breaks down within about a decade, unlike carbon dioxide, which can persist for centuries. Cutting human-caused methane emissions by 45% this decade could prevent nearly 0.3°C of warming by 2045.
Global Strategy Group conducted the 10-minute online poll between August 3 and August 25, 2026, translated into 13 languages. The survey gathered responses from 12,189 adults, including at least 700 in Morocco. The margin of error for the Moroccan sample is ±3.6%.
