The World Bank has approved a $250 million financing package to support Morocco’s comprehensive social protection reform, marking a significant boost to the country’s efforts to strengthen safety nets and promote inclusive growth.
The funding supports the Project for Strengthening Social Protection Nets for Human Development, aimed at enhancing Morocco’s social protection system effectiveness by improving access to cash transfers and expanding social benefits for vulnerable households. This initiative represents a crucial component of Morocco’s broader strategy to address persistent challenges including high unemployment and low female labor force participation.
Morocco’s government launched its direct social assistance program in December 2023, which already supports 3.9 million households as of March 2025. The World Bank-backed project will strengthen the National Social Support Agency’s capacity to implement this program, improving poor and vulnerable households’ access to monetary aid while promoting socioeconomic inclusion through enhanced social services and productive economic inclusion programs.
The initiative adopts a results-oriented, citizen-centered approach, providing immediate economic support while fostering long-term resilience and human capital investment. By optimizing public spending and supporting labor market participation, the project particularly targets rural and isolated areas vulnerable to climate stress.
Ahmadou Moustapha Ndiaye, World Bank Director for Maghreb and Malta, acknowledged Morocco’s resilience despite multiple challenges, noting the national poverty rate of 3.8% in 2022. He emphasized the project’s innovative features, particularly its focus on promoting employment access and care services to increase women’s and youth participation in the workforce.
The financing aligns with Morocco’s two-decade trajectory of economic and social progress, driven by social protection reforms that have improved living standards and expanded access to essential services across the kingdom.