For many years, mental health in Morocco has been hampered by limited resources and difficult access to care. The government now wants to speed up reform of the sector. The Mental Health Plan 2030, launched on Thursday 3 September in Rabat, provides for nearly 4 billion dirhams to strengthen prevention, treatment and patient support.
According to data presented by the Ministry of Health and Social Protection, 6.5 million Moroccans live with a mental health disorder. Among them, nearly 2 million are children and young people. The ministry also estimates that 85% of people affected do not have access to the care they need.
Mental health in Morocco: 86 actions planned by 2030
The new Mental Health Plan 2030 aims to profoundly change how mental disorders are treated.
The programme is built around three strategic pillars and four cross-cutting framework conditions. In total, it includes 86 actions and measures.
The ministry wants in particular to strengthen prevention and encourage earlier screening. It also plans to bring mental health services closer to citizens.
This new approach is intended to reduce dependence on psychiatric hospitalisation. It also seeks to promote a continuous care pathway, from prevention to treatment, then rehabilitation and social reintegration.
More psychiatric hospitals across the Kingdom
A shortage of infrastructure remains one of the main challenges for mental health in Morocco. By 2030, the ministry plans to increase the number of psychiatric hospitals from 10 to 17.
The number of intermediate structures is also set to rise, from 4 currently to 24.
Hospital capacity is expected to almost double as well. The number of beds dedicated to mental health should increase from 2,466 to around 4,728.
The goal is to develop a mental health care offer in all regions of the Kingdom and reduce territorial inequalities.
Mental health in Morocco: major investment in psychologists
Strengthening infrastructure alone is not enough. Morocco also intends to significantly increase its human resources.
The number of psychologists in the public sector should rise from 32 today to 786 by 2030. The plan also provides for an increase in the annual training capacity for psychiatrists, from 36 to 124.
For mental health specialist nurses, annual training capacity would go from 490 to 750. The government also plans to introduce a legal framework to regulate the profession of psychologist.
Prevention at the heart of the Mental Health Plan 2030
The new scheme is not limited to hospitals. The ministry wants to boost prevention and early detection, particularly among children and adolescents.
The plan provides for interventions starting in the perinatal period. It also includes tools to detect psychological distress among teenagers.
Schools will play a central role. Actions will focus in particular on digital well-being and on training teachers to identify certain warning signs of suicidal risk.
Older people, prisoners and people experiencing homelessness are also among the priority groups targeted.
Funding of nearly 4 billion dirhams
Implementation of the Mental Health Plan 2030 will benefit from a budget envelope of nearly 4 billion dirhams.
This funding is intended to support the expansion of infrastructure, the strengthening of human resources and the rollout of the various planned measures.
The plan was drawn up with the participation of 13 government departments and several institutional, scientific and civil society stakeholders. The World Health Organization also took part in its development.
Towards better care for patients
The government also wants to better integrate mental health in Morocco into the overall health system. Primary healthcare services are expected to play a greater role in screening and guiding patients.
This organisation should make it possible to intervene earlier and avoid situations where patients only reach hospital when their condition has become critical.
The ministry also plans to adapt mental health financing to the rollout of universal social protection. Discussions are underway on how to cover mental health services under compulsory health insurance.
Mental health in Morocco: towards a new model of care
With this new plan, Morocco aims to move beyond a model focused solely on hospitalisation. Prevention, early detection, community-based care and rehabilitation are becoming priorities.
The targets are ambitious: 17 psychiatric hospitals, 24 intermediate structures, around 4,728 beds and 786 psychologists in the public sector by 2030.
The challenge now will be to turn these targets into concrete, accessible results for the entire population.
For the millions of Moroccans living with mental health disorders, the stakes go far beyond the numbers. It is about easier access to appropriate care and changing how society views psychological suffering.
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