Over 70% of Moroccan households received cash handouts to cope with Covid 19

Morocco has distributed cash to a little over 70% of Moroccan households to help them cope with the restrictive measures to curb the coronavirus, finance minister said.

Morocco has offered 2000 dirhams from March to June to workers affiliated to the pension fund CNSS and up to 1200 to households, whose main provider is working in the informal sector.

These households include 5.5 million in the informal sector and 500,000 whose main provider is affiliated with CNSS.

This shows that 64% of Moroccan families are directly gaining their living from informal economy activities.

Since the beginning of the lockdown on March 20, Morocco has spent $1.1 billion in cash distribution to protect the purchasing power of households.

The money was provided by a special fund created under instructions of King Mohammed VI and gathering donations worth $3.4 bln including 1 billion offered by the state.

Morocco has been preparing a national registry to better target the needy in order to facilitate cash distribution.