Morocco Lowers Unemployment Rate to 10.5% in Q1

Morocco’s unemployment rate fell to 10.5% in the first quarter of 2018 as Moroccan economy managed to create 116,000 jobs in a year.

Last year, unemployment rate stood at 10.7%, the High Commission for Planning (HCP) said in its latest statistics.

Services, agriculture and construction created 50,000, 43,000 and 32,000 jobs respectively. Manufacturing lost 9,000 jobs, according to the HCP.

The unemployment rate in urban areas was slightly down from 15.7% to 15.6%, while it significantly decreased from 4.1% to 3.5% in rural areas due to bountiful rainfall.

Unemployment remains high among urban youth aged between 15 to 29, particularly graduates.

The Moroccan government has set it as one of the top goals to reduce the unemployment rate to 8.5% by 2021.