CAES Morocco: Leading Across Differences

  Blog 2: Ability or Social Status In the few countries I’ve traveled to before coming to Morocco, it is evident that many people speak two or more languages. I did not expect just how much I would see this while traveling through Morocco. Throughout the trip, we were surrounded by people who could effortlessly switch between Arabic, French, English, Amazigh, and sometimes Spanish and Italian too. In many professional or business environments, French seemed especially common, while Arabic and Amazigh were more common in everyday conversations and local settings. Before coming here, I never really thought about how language itself could reflect differences in education, opportunity, and social status within a country. According to Britannica, French influence in Morocco expanded significantly during the French protectorate from 1912 to 1956, especially within education, government, and business systems. Even after independence, French remained heavily connected to professional advan...

                When exploring gender roles in Morocco, I was intrigued by the family laws and divorce process in the country. While in the United States, approximately 40% of marriages end in divorce, that statistic only reaches around 10% in Morocco.  To understand the difference in those numbers, I researched the divorce process in Morocco, as well as the social perception of divorced women in the country.                 Because the country is deeply rooted in Islam, most Moroccans try to avoid divorce as much as possible. Historically, the husband had the sole ability to file for divorce, whereas women could only repudiate a marriage for six specific reasons as quoted from the Quran, requiring extenuating circumstances and direct proof. In 2004, the Moroccan government introduced a new family law called the Moudawana that allowed for “two new categories of divorce for women including mutu...

While being in Morocco, one thing I noticed was the role gender plays in education and professional opportunities for women. Women in Morocco are turning universities and pursuing careers is more than before, especially in large cities. At the same time they are still traditional expectations that influence what woman chose to do professionally. in many Moroccan families women are still expected to focus more on marriage, family responsibilities, or staying closer to home. According to UN woman, Morocco has made progress woman education, but are still challenges involve in daily workplace equality, and career advancement. This topic resonated with me a lot because United States has similar gender expectations . An American woman have more representation and leadership position and careers, but there are still issues like an eco-pay and pressure balance work in family life. Being in Morocco made me think about those similarities and how culture influences people’s choices and opportunit...