Morocco's 'Nouara' Program Targets 1,500 Rural Women for Financial Literacy

The 'Nouara' program has commenced in Morocco, integrating practical life skills with financial education to support rural women's entrepreneurship across the Marrakech-Safi region. Formally launched in December 2025, the initiative is structured to provide focused financial workshops to 1,500 rural women.

This extensive effort is a multi-partner collaboration, formalized by an agreement signed on December 19th in Casablanca. Key supporters include the Moroccan Foundation for Financial Education (FMEF), Fondation Zakoura, Damane Cash, and the GIZ WoMENA project, all committed to advancing financial inclusion within the target communities.

The curriculum is divided into two main phases: foundational personal finance awareness, followed by specialized support for entrepreneurial development. Participants are instructed in essential competencies, including budgeting, saving habits, the effective use of formal financial services, and the principles of female entrepreneurship. The program sets a measurable goal of fostering the establishment of 200 viable local projects to enhance the economic resilience of rural areas.

Partners contribute specific expertise to the initiative. Damane Cash provides specialized knowledge on proximity payments, aligning with its digital financial solutions like the 'Damane Pay' M-Wallet service launched in April 2020. The GIZ WoMENA project focuses on delivering technical assistance to bolster women's autonomy in their economic activities, consistent with GIZ's broader regional mandate for women's participation in the MENA region.

The FMEF is responsible for developing educational materials, ensuring they meet rigorous international standards while remaining contextually relevant for Moroccan settings. Established in 2013, the FMEF has a strategic focus on rural populations and women, aiming to address the 20 percentage point gender gap in account ownership recorded in 2024. Fondation Zakoura, a public utility since 1997, leads the program's execution, drawing on its experience in deploying socio-educational projects, including social entrepreneurship training, in rural Morocco.

Collectively, the partners assert that robust financial education and the cultivation of female entrepreneurship are essential catalysts for achieving sustainable and inclusive national development. The 'Nouara' program directly addresses systemic barriers—limited access to tailored financial products and institutional mistrust—by focusing on tangible skills and local project creation for rural women.