“Working is better than asking for charity in ​the streets”

Series : The Root Causes of Migration 

For years, Morocco has mainly served as a transit country for migrants from sub-Saharan Africa seeking to reach Europe. But the situation is changing : more and more people are staying put, sometimes for long periods, or even permanently. This shift is transforming rural areas in particular, where the local workforce is dwindling and migrants are becoming essential to the agricultural economy.

A picture of a Sub-Saharan migrant working in a field (CC picture)

This change can be attributed to several factors. Stricter border controls are making crossings into Europe much more difficult, leaving many migrants stuck in Morocco. At the same time, the country’s urbanisation is driving Moroccans to leave the countryside for the cities, abandoning sectors such as agriculture. As a result, farms, particularly in the south, are increasingly relying on migrant labour, often undocumented.

In the Souss-Massa region, near Agadir, this transformation is particularly evident. Large-scale farms, which are vital to fruit and vegetable exports, now rely heavily on workers from West Africa. Many initially attempted to reach Europe before being sent back or stranded in Morocco, and were then directed towards agricultural jobs.

This is the case of Abdulfattah Aliou, a young migrant from Togo. After an unsuccessful attempt to reach the Spanish enclave and being forcibly returned to Morocco, he ended up working on a tomato farm. Reflecting on his situation, he says : “Working is better than asking for charity in the streets.”

Over time, some migrants settle more permanently. Others, such as workers who have been in the country for decades, end up building lives there, sometimes with children enrolled in Moroccan schools. Even though their situation often remains precarious and informal, their presence has become a structural part of Moroccan agriculture.

Meanwhile, rural areas in Morocco continue to empty due to drought and rural exodus. The agricultural sector, already under pressure, is therefore increasingly reliant on this foreign workforce. What initially was a transit country is gradually becoming a country of settlement, where migrants fill a growing structural economic gap.

The full report can be found here : 

https://www.infomigrants.net/en/post/70966/farmhands-needed-moroccos-changing-role-in-migration