Morocco’s Prison Population Nears 85,000, Youth Offenders Dominate

In its annual report entitled "the situation of prisons and prisoners in Morocco for the year 2020", the Observatory took stock of the general conditions of detention and exposed the challenges related to prison overcrowding.

It emerges that the prison population as of December 31, 2020 amounted to 84,994 inmates, noting that the 20-30 age group is at the top of this population (43%). Private law crimes are the most frequent with 33%, followed by financial crimes (25%) and crimes against persons (16%), he added.

Regarding new arrivals in penitentiary establishments, the year 2020 was marked by an "alarming" increase in their number with 14,917. Also, the percentage of convicted inmates reached 54%, while the proportion of remand prisoners was 46%, or 5% more than in 2018 and 2019.

Regarding health care and services within prisons, the Observatory reports that the health staff working in penitentiary establishments is 702, representing 7% of prison officials, with a coverage rate of one medical staff for 100 inmates and 1 doctor for 2,500 inmates. Similarly, the average number of medical consultations reached 6 consultations/inmate until the end of September 2020.

Faced with this rather gloomy picture, the OMP called for the realization of the participatory approach in the management of the sector in order to humanize the penitentiary establishments and improve their conditions, an operation which requires an effective reform involving all stakeholders, including civil society, while ensuring the qualification of the human element.

It is urgent, according to the observatory, to carry out the reform of the criminal justice system in order to reduce the phenomenon of pre-trial detention and rationalize its application, and the adoption and incorporation into the Penal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure of alternative non-custodial sentences, concluded the report.