Mansouri tells House of Councillors Morocco is still far from gender parity

Head of Government Fatima Al-Zahra Al-Mansouri said on Wednesday that Morocco remains far from the parity between women and men set out in the 2011 Constitution, even though a woman now leads the executive for the first time.

At a plenary sitting of the House of Councillors devoted to the government statement, she described her appointment as historic and said Moroccan women had waited a long time for it. The milestone, she added, should not obscure how much work is still needed to strengthen women’s place in political and institutional life.

Women as half the nation’s potential

Turning to the women in the chamber, including representatives of trade unions, political parties and other organisations, Mansouri said female participation still falls short of the ambition carried by the Constitution.

She tied the issue directly to the majority’s development project, arguing that an “emerging Morocco” cannot be built without drawing fully on women’s abilities. Women represent 50 percent of the country’s potential, she said, and neglecting that capacity would prevent the Kingdom from reaching its economic, social and development goals.

A shared government responsibility

The creation of a ministry in charge of the family, whose remit includes parity, reflects the majority’s commitment to the issue, Mansouri said. She pledged to work hand in hand with the minister responsible, Ngoua Koukous, to advance policies aimed at women.

Women’s issues, like those of young people, cannot be confined to a single ministry, she stressed, and require coordinated public policies involving every government department.

Defending the government statement

Responding to critics who called the government statement a mere declaration of intent, Mansouri acknowledged that such a document by nature sets out directions and commitments, but said her government also has concrete measures, figures and funding to carry out its programme.

She drew a distinction between the statement she presented to both Houses of Parliament on Monday and the 2027 finance bill. The legislative elections were held on September 23, His Majesty King Mohammed VI tasked her with forming the government on September 29, and the cabinet was completed within 16 days, she recalled, alongside a joint programme drafted by a committee of the majority parties.

That pace, she said, allowed the government to meet institutional deadlines, including the Council of Ministers and the bill’s examination by the Government Council. The finance bill was filed within the legal time limits, but its debate in Parliament has not begun, since it cannot precede completion of the constitutional procedure on the government statement before the House of Representatives. Mansouri said the aim was to avoid losing a year before implementing the government’s economic and social commitments.