Rabat – Morocco continues to grapple with a high illiteracy rate despite years of efforts and significant financial investment, with 27.9% of people over 15 years old still unable to read or write, according to the latest census. 

Zineb El Adaoui, President of Morocco’s Court of Accounts, described the country’s illiteracy rate as “unsatisfactory” during a parliamentary session on Wednesday. She noted the need for a focused program between the state and the National Agency for the Fight Against Illiteracy to set clear strategic goals and timelines.

In her evaluation of the national literacy strategy, El Adaoui noted a steady increase in the number of participants in literacy programs. The number of registered learners grew from 674,000 in the 2014-2015 academic year to 852,000 in 2022-2023, an average annual increase of 4.1%. Over 7.7 million individuals benefited from these programs between 2015 and 2023.