Morocco Reports Surge in Marriages, Decline in Divorces Post-Pandemic

In its document "Social Indicators of Morocco - 2023 Edition", the HCP notes, with regard to marriage, a "return" or a "recovery" compared to 2020 where a decline was recorded. From 275,000 in 2019, the number of marriage contracts fell to 194,000 in 2020 before rising to 270,000 in 2021, according to data from the national statistics institute.

Regarding divorce, the trend would be downward compared to the pre-pandemic level, with nearly 27,000 divorce judgments in 2021 compared to more than 27,000 in 2019. A decline caused by the decrease in the number of marriages during the reference period, explains the HCP, specifying that during the health crisis, the number of divorces was equal to the number of marriages, i.e. 20,000 cases, representing the lowest figure recorded in recent years.

The trend seems to be on the rise in terms of fertility and the birth rate among Moroccan families. The fertility rate reached 2.4 children per woman in Morocco (2.1 in urban areas versus 2.4 in rural areas), a rate still above the "threshold for the renewal of generations" set at 2.1 children.

Regarding contraception and birth control, there is a high use of contraceptive methods, both in rural (70.3%) and urban (71.1%) areas, an increase of 10 points among rural women compared to 2004 where this rate was 60%. The prevalence rate of "modern methods of contraception and birth control" has increased by 9 points in rural areas over the same period.