The women fighting adult illiteracy in Morocco

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This article first appeared in our partner site, Independent Arabia

Sixty-year-old widow Fatimou Badwan can read the Qur’an, albeit with some difficulty, and demonstrates proficiency in basic arithmetic operations like addition and subtraction. Her progress is credited to her participation in literacy programmes run by Morocco’s National Agency for the Fight against Illiteracy. These programmes fall under the purview of the Ministry of Education, while the Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs oversee literacy instruction in mosques.

Fatimou is among over one million men and women who have received literacy lessons during 2023 alone, according to statistics from the National Agency for the Fight against Illiteracy.

From ‘darkness to light’

Fatimou describes her struggle in overcoming illiteracy at a mosque in the bustling Farah neighbourhood on the outskirts of the Moroccan capital, Rabat as a journey from darkness into light, and from ignorance to knowledge. After years of struggling with illiteracy, she feels she has been given a new life.

The sixty-year-old was born in one of Morocco’s mountainous regions, where educational opportunities for girls were scarce. Here, their primary roles revolved around tending to pastures, fields, or household chores, with formal schooling reserved only for boys. She spent most of her life according to her husband’s wishes until his passing a few years ago. Her sons and daughters have since married and started their own families, leaving her with a sense of emptiness. It was this feeling of emptiness that prompted her to contemplate investing her time in participating in the literacy programme.

She opted for a literacy programme run by a mosque. She diligently attended lessons primarily focused on learning to read and write, along with other educational and enrichment activities. Over the course of a few years, she became proficient enough to read independently, including the Qur’an, letters, and other essential daily materials.

As for Zahwa, who didn’t have the opportunity to receive an education in her rural community before relocating to the city of Salé, adjacent to the capital, she says that she takes literacy classes in an educational institution so that she doesn’t feel inferior to her "educated" friends and neighbours.

She tells Independent Arabia that one of the reasons that prompted her to sign up to the course was her desire to find some basic employment to support her family. Her illiteracy had always hindered her from achieving this goal.

Official statistics

Figures recently disclosed by Professor Abdelouadoud Kharbouch, Director of the Moroccan National Agency for the Fight against Illiteracy, indicate that the number of beneficiaries of literacy programmes during 2023 reached more than one million people. In addition, over 9 million people have enrolled in literacy programmes since 2014, with 85 per cent being women and 65 per cent hailing from villages and desert regions.

The agency runs literacy programmes for various segments of society, with particular attention given to individuals with physical disabilities, as well as prisoners and workers in various professions and crafts.

In 2023, Morocco launched a literacy programme aimed at immigrants and refugees, alongside officially inaugurating the Institute for Training in Literacy Professions (IFMA). This was in cooperation with the Unesco-led Global Education Coalition and the Global Alliance for Literacy (GAL). Efforts were also directed towards empowering activists dedicated to combating illiteracy. These endeavours aimed to bolster the achievement of individuals involved in literacy programmes.

As for literacy initiatives conducted in mosques, official figures indicate that the total number of beneficiaries from the inception of the programme in 2000 to 2023 has surpassed 4.5 million, including 1.9 million people in rural areas.

Slow progress

Mahjoub Adriush, researcher in education and training systems, acknowledges Morocco’s efforts in combating illiteracy. The country’s illiteracy rate was around 70 per cent in 1982, dropping to 43.2 per cent in 2004, with World Bank statistics from 2021 showing it had fallen to 24 per cent.

Adriush noted an uptake in enrolment in illiteracy eradication programmes; however, he remarked that progress in eliminating the phenomenon was slow and marginal. There were three primary indicators evidencing this, the first of which was that the illiteracy was not decreasing by more than one percentage point annually.

The second indicator, according to him, was that the approved programmes meant to contribute to reducing illiteracy were not yielding the expected results. The 2014/2020 roadmap, through which the government aimed to decrease the overall illiteracy rate to 20 per cent by 2016 and to less than 10 per cent by 2020, failed to achieve its goals as intended.

Adriush further noted that the third indicator revolved around women’s education, whether in terms of non-attendance or dropout rates. These challenges stand as significant obstacles for the country in its efforts to eradicate illiteracy.

Positive discrimination

A 2023 report from the government’s High Commission for Planning, indicates that the literacy rate among individuals aged 15 and above is 67.3 per cent. However, for women, this figure drops to 57.7 per cent. Among adults aged 50 and over, the literacy rate decreases to 41.3 per cent, while for women in this age group, it is 27.1 per cent.

According to Adriush, it is essential to implement positive discrimination and integrate a gendered approach into all public policies aimed at reducing illiteracy among women with the ultimate goal of eradicating it. This involves specifically targeting women and girls living in remote rural areas, far from established literacy centres.

He also proposed that the certificate awarded to women who have passed the literacy programme should not merely serve as a token, but also grant them privileges in accessing further training or qualification. This approach should aim to encourage more women to participate in the programmes.

Reviewed by Tooba Ali