Study Reveals Early Sexual Activity Among Moroccan Youth, Average First Intercourse at 18

Conducted among 600 young people aged 14 to 30 by the AMPF in June and July 2021 in Casablanca, Marrakech, Fez, Rabat and Oujda, this study reveals that among young people - one third of the population -, sexual life begins at an early age, at 13 years old. Most of them had their first sexual intercourse between 15 and 22 years old. There is a peak in the frequency of intercourse between 16 and 19 years old. For the young people surveyed, the average age of first sexual intercourse was 18 years for men and 19 years for women. 93% of them say that this relationship was consensual. 75% of young people say they have had non-penetrative sexual intercourse. The respondents say they had their first sexual intercourse with friends (76.4% of cases). 12% of the young people surveyed say they have had sexual relations with sex workers. 11% of the respondents say they had their first sexual intercourse with a fiancé or a family member.

For 88% of the young people surveyed, the frequency of sexual intercourse is occasional, say the authors of the study, adding that only one in ten (11%) say they have regular sexual intercourse. Half of the young people surveyed admit to having had unprotected sex, it is also specified. According to the study report, four out of ten young people admit to having only a weak knowledge of contraceptive methods and sexually transmitted diseases. Only 14.8% of young people say they talk about sexual and reproductive health with their family, sexuality still being a taboo subject in the family.