Prostitution in Morocco

[2] Prostitutes tend to be Moroccan women from lower socioeconomic backgrounds as well as migrants from sub-Saharan Africa, many of whom are victims of human trafficking [3] UNAIDS estimated the figure at 75,000 in 2016.

[16] Many authors such as Christelle Taraud have attributed the increase in prostitution during the French colonial period to the abolition of slavery in Morocco.

[21] The leading actress, Loubna Abidar, received death threats and in November 2015, she was violently attacked in Casablanca and left the country for France soon after.

[22][23] Religious authorities condemned the film for portraying a negative image of Morocco, with its supporting of extramarital sex and sympathy for homosexuals.

According to a November 2015 study conducted by the Moroccan government, with support by an international organization, children are exploited in sex trafficking.

[28] Some female undocumented migrants, primarily from Sub-Saharan Africa and a small but growing number from South Asia, are coerced into prostitution.

Criminal networks operating in Oujda on the Algerian border and in the northern coastal town of Nador force undocumented migrant women into prostitution.

International organizations, local NGOs, and migrants report unaccompanied children and women from Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, and Cameroon are highly vulnerable to sex trafficking in Morocco.

Moroccan women forced into prostitution abroad experience restrictions on movement, threats, and emotional and physical abuse.