An official report documented a growing tendency towards religious zeal among Moroccan youth. Differing from previous generations, the report shows a massive drift away from and dissent towards integration of West-inspired modernizations.
The document went on to warn that growing anti-West sentiment mixed with rising religious fanaticism can be a precursor to “religious extremism in some cases.”
Issued this week by the Economic and Social Council (CES) in Morocco, the report said that a large segment of the country's youth remained greatly marginalized by economic growth. It also underlined high unemployment and dropout rates among young people, which make up one-third of the country's population.
The report also pointed out that the majority of young Moroccans between the ages of 15 and 34 are left behind by economic growth, highlighting a nationwide “lack of confidence and feelings of resentment towards policies and public services.” More so, the report said that 82 percent of Moroccan youth were not active and spent 72 percent of their time on “unproductive social welfare activities”—adding that 75 percent had no health insurance.
The document went on to say that a fifth of Moroccan youth suffered from psychological disorders.
As for academia, Moroccan youths registered a high drop-out rate further aggravated by an unemployment rate of up to 20 percent.
Most young people are working unregulated low-wage jobs, the report said. It added that unemployment affects mostly young females.
Young Moroccans have launched protests nationwide against deteriorating living conditions. Unfortunately, some of the riots ended with prosecutions and legal suits being pressed.
For their part, Moroccan authorities launched development projects in an effort to calm protests.
In a July speech, Morocco's King Mohammed VI called for a “comprehensive and deep restructuring of national support and social protection programs and policies.”
The CES report called for the launch of a national “for integration” initiative attending to youths in specific, in hopes of countering what it labeled a genuine crisis of confidence between young people and political institutions.
