Rabat, The Europe Today – August 5, 2025: Morocco’s national unemployment rate decreased to 12.8% in the second quarter of 2025, down from 13.1% during the same period in 2024, according to new data released by the High Commission for Planning (HCP). The figures mark the first quarterly decline in unemployment after several consecutive increases.
The modest national improvement was largely driven by job creation in urban areas, which saw the addition of 114,000 new jobs, helping to reduce urban unemployment from 16.7% to 16.4%.
Among the key sectors contributing to job growth:
- Construction led with 74,000 new jobs;
- Services followed with 35,000 jobs;
- Industry added 10,000 positions.
Across the country, 132,000 paid jobs were created, reflecting a slight but positive trend in the formal job market.
However, the progress in cities was offset by a deteriorating employment landscape in rural areas, where a net loss of 107,000 jobs was recorded. The agriculture sector accounted for nearly all of this loss, eliminating 108,000 positions. While rural unemployment dropped to 6.2%, the decline was attributed more to a shrinking labor force than job creation, as many rural workers either migrated to urban areas or exited the workforce entirely.
Despite the national decline in unemployment, the report underscores persistent structural challenges:
- Female unemployment rose sharply to 19.9%, up from 17.7% in the previous year.
- Youth unemployment remains critical, with 35.8% of those aged 15–24 and 21.9% of those aged 25–34 out of work.
- Regional disparities are also stark:
- Southern regions reported the highest unemployment at 25.8%.
- The Oriental region followed with 21.1%.
- In contrast, Draa-Tafilalet and Marrakech-Safi recorded significantly lower rates of 6.4% and 7.5%, respectively.
The number of underemployed individuals—those working fewer hours than they would like or in unstable conditions—also increased to 1.15 million, up from 1.04 million, signaling growing concern over job quality and income security.
While the drop in the overall unemployment rate offers a glimmer of hope, analysts caution that the figures mask deep-seated inequalities between urban and rural populations, men and women, and various regions of the country. Policymakers are now being urged to implement targeted measures to address these disparities and ensure inclusive, sustainable employment growth.
