Morocco
ABORTION POLICY
Grounds on which abortion is permitted:
To save the life of the woman
To preserve physical health
To preserve mental health
Rape or incest
Foetal impairment
Economic or social reasons
Available on request
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
No
Additional requirements:
The intervention must be “openly performed” within six weeks of pregnancy by a physician with the
consent of the spouse. If the husband refuses or cannot give his consent, the physician is required to obtain
the authorization of the chief medical officer of the province or prefecture, by presenting written notification
to the effect that the intervention is the only means of safeguarding the health of the woman. If the woman’s
life is in jeopardy, the only requirement is notification of the chief medical officer of the province or
prefecture by the physician.
REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH CONTEXT
Government view on fertility level:
Too high
Government intervention concerning fertility level:
To lower
Government policy on contraceptive use:
Direct support provided
Percentage of currently married women using
modern contraception (aged 15-49, 1995):
42
Total fertility rate (1995-2000):
3.1
Age-specific fertility rate (per 1,000 women aged 15-19, 1995-2000):
50
Government has expressed particular concern about:
Morbidity and mortality resulting from induced abortion
Complications of childbearing and childbirth
No
Yes
Maternal mortality ratio (per 100,000 live births, 1990):
National
Northern Africa
610
340
Female life expectancy at birth (1995-2000):
68.5
Source: Population Policy Data Bank maintained by the Population Division of the Department for Economic and Social Affairs of the
United Nations Secretariat. For additional sources, see list of references.
145
Morocco
BACKGROUND
Morocco’s abortion law was first liberalized in 1967. At that time, Article 453 of the Penal Code was
amended by Royal Decree No. 181-66 (1 July 1967) to provide that the performance of an abortion shall not
be punished when it is a necessary measure to safeguard the health of the mother and is openly performed by
a physician or a surgeon with the consent of the spouse. If there is no husband or the husband refuses or is
prevented from giving his consent, the physician or surgeon may not perform the abortion without the written
opinion of the chief medical officer of the province or prefecture, certifying that the intervention is the only
means of safeguarding the health of the woman. If the physician believes that the woman’s life is in jeopardy,
the consent of the spouse or opinion of the chief medical officer is not required. The physician or surgeon
must, however, give his opinion to the chief medical officer of the province or prefecture.
In all other cases, abortion is illegal under the Penal Code, although some evidence exists that foetal
impairment may be taken into account under medical indications. Any person performing an illegal abortion
is subject to one to five years’ imprisonment and payment of a fine of 120-500 Moroccan dirhams (DH). The
penalty of imprisonment is doubled in the case of persons who regularly perform abortions. Medical and
health personnel who perform an illegal abortion are subject to the same penalties, as well as to temporary or
permanent suspension from exercising their profession. A woman who induces her own abortion or consents
to it being induced is subject to six months’ to two years’ imprisonment and payment of a fine of DH 120500.
Family planning in Morocco has encountered strong religious and political opposition. Consequently,
moves to strengthen family planning efforts have been quite cautious. In the case of abortion, the issue has
been complicated by the views of religious scholars concerning the beginnings of life. Some believe that
abortion should be allowed only in exceptional circumstances and that the abortion law of Morocco should
not be liberalized.
The Government of Morocco has supported family planning since independence in 1956 and has
recognized the influence of demographic factors on national development. Royal Decree No. 181-66 of 1 July
1967, which modified the abortion law, also repealed the French law of 10 July 1939, which prohibited the
advertisement and sale of contraceptives. Since then, contraceptives have been distributed free of charge in
government family planning centres. Beginning with the development plan of 1968-1972, population issues,
including family planning, have been accorded high priority in the planning process in Morocco. In 1971, the
Association Marocaine de planification familiale, a private body, was established. Its role has evolved over
the years, expanding its informational and educational activities to include clinical services.
Family planning activities in Morocco have been fully integrated into the overall health-care facilities,
which has resulted in some financial difficulties and has actually hampered access to contraception by
subsuming it under medical services. For these reasons, in the early 1980s, the Government assigned to the
Ministry of Public Health the responsibility for undertaking a policy of “de-medicalization” of family
planning services in order to increase access to contraception. In addition, two innovative programmes were
introduced, one involving mobile clinics providing maternal and child health and family planning services in
remote rural areas and the other involving systematic home visits to encourage the use of contraception and to
provide family planning and primary health-care services.
Source: Population Policy Data Bank maintained by the Population Division of the Department for Economic and Social Affairs of the
United Nations Secretariat. For additional sources, see list of references.
146
Morocco
Illegal abortion appears to be quite widespread in Morocco, with many women resorting to abortion as a
contraceptive method. In addition, it appears that the incidence of illegal abortion is underestimated, given
the fact that many women obtaining an illegal abortion appear to be married women from the urban upper and
middle classes who undergo an abortion in a private clinic. Surveys of public hospitals suggest that a
significant number of admissions are of women from lower socio-economic groups suffering from
complications due to septic abortion.
Source: Population Policy Data Bank maintained by the Population Division of the Department for Economic and Social Affairs of the
United Nations Secretariat. For additional sources, see list of references.
147