Rabat – Morocco’s direct social support program has significantly expanded its reach among widowed and divorced women, according to data presented by Fouzi Lekjaa, the Minister Delegate in charge of the Budget.
Lekjaa revealed that by the end of October, 386,214 widowed women were benefiting from the program. Between July 2024 and October 2025, the scheme recorded a monthly average of around 404,575 beneficiaries, doubling the number previously covered under earlier support programs targeting widows in vulnerable situations.
Support for divorced women also saw what Lekjaa described as a “qualitative leap.” By the end of October 2025, more than 152,951 divorced women were receiving assistance, a figure fourteen times higher than the number of beneficiaries under the former Family Solidarity Fund. The program maintained a stable monthly average of about 152,443 beneficiaries.
The figures were shared in response to a parliamentary question submitted by MP Mohamed Ouzzine. Lekjaa attributed the program’s performance to the implementation of High Royal Directives calling for the consolidation of social support schemes and improved targeting of vulnerable groups. He pointed to the adoption of a fully digital application process and a transparent targeting system based on the Unified Social Register and the National Population Register.
Launched in December 2023, the program ended years of fragmented and overlapping initiatives by integrating previous mechanisms, including the Family Solidarity Fund and the widows’ support program, into a single unified system.
The direct social support program aims to benefit 60% of the population not covered by family allowance systems. It provides monthly child allowances for up to six children, additional support for orphans and persons with disabilities, birth and school-entry grants as a continuation of the “One Million Schoolbags” initiative under preferential conditions, and a flat-rate allowance for households without children or those including elderly members. The program also includes dedicated support for orphans living in social care institutions.
Lekjaa emphasized that Law 58.23 marked a decisive legal break from the limitations of earlier programs. Between 2011 and 2022, the Family Solidarity Fund reached only 27,548 women over three years, while the widows’ support program benefited 132,649 women between 2015 and 2023. The new system surpassed these figures within months, reinforcing the effectiveness of the Royal vision to unify and strengthen social protection in Morocco.
The results leave “no room for doubt” about the success of the direct social support program, particularly in improving support for widowed and divorced women, Lekjaa concluded.
