Morocco’s Population Aging as Fertility Rates Drop and Life Expectancy Rises

In Morocco, the number of children within the total population is expected to decrease. According to the report, "the fertility rate stands at 2.4 children per woman in 2020 and the life expectancy of Moroccans is 77 years. According to the UNFPA, women aged 15 to 49 are increasingly using "modern contraceptive methods with a rate of 60%".

This enthusiasm for family planning has nevertheless helped to significantly reduce the maternal mortality rate. "This rate is 70 deaths in Morocco per 100,000 live births," while the average in the "Arab world is 151 per 100,000 live births," reports aujourdhui.ma.

The other aspect raised by the report is the percentage of births assisted by a health professional, which has improved to 87% over the period 2014-2019. Regarding early pregnancies, risk factors among adolescents, the rate was 18% over the period 2003-2018.

As for child marriage, which remains a very prevalent phenomenon in Morocco, the report talks about a rate of 14% during the period 2005-2019. "32,000 requests for marriage of minors had been recorded during the year 2019".

It should be noted that according to the data collected by this UNFPA document, "the evolution of the population in Morocco in the coming years will have significant impacts on employment and the protection of the elderly," the same source specifies.