Study: Morocco Faces Rapid Population Aging by 2050, Raising Economic Concerns

The results of this study conducted by the demographer Mohamed Fassi Fihri are formal and call on all components of the societies concerned, especially the public authorities and development partners. Entitled "Demography of the Maghreb: reality and prospects", this study notes that "the demographic transition currently experienced by the Maghreb countries has led to a decline in the school-age population and an increase in the working-age population".

From this study by the demographer, we learn that the population of the Maghreb countries is currently around 100 million, or 1.3% of the world’s population and 7.8% of the African population, mainly distributed in Algeria and Morocco, respectively with 42.1% and 35.3%, then Tunisia (11.7%), Libya (6.5%) and Mauritania (4.5%). Although the pace of demographic change indicates a relative control of population growth in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia, this does not mean the exclusion of demographic pressure in the future.

Furthermore, this study indicates above all that aging will weigh heavily on the Maghreb countries. The number of people aged 60 and over will reach 30.5 million in 2050 compared to 10.2 million in 2018. In Morocco, the number of people currently aged 60 and over is 1.4 million, but it will reach 3.6 million in 2050, and their weight in the Moroccan population will be between 12.7% and 26.5%.

The study concludes that given this rapid acceleration, aging will become a problem for the Maghreb countries and will exert pressure on pension systems and the health sector in particular.