Casablanca

Morocco / North Atlantic Coast / Casablanca

OVERVIEW

Contraception (Birth Control)

General Note: There are many types of contraceptives, also known as "birth control," including IUDs, oral contraceptives, patches, shots, and condoms, etc. If you would like to view a full list, click here.

Laws & Social Stigmas

In Morocco, birth control is informally available without a prescription. This means that it can be purchased over-the-counter at pharmacies. You can also access other forms of birth control, such as condoms, shots and IUDs. It is estimated that about 68% of Moroccan women use some form of contraception and that 48% use modern contraceptive methods. It was found in a 2015 UN report that 9.7% of Moroccan women have unmet family planning needs. The most common birth control methods were the pill (used by 49.6% of Moroccan women who are in marriages or in unions), IUD (4.3%), withdrawal (3.9%), rhythm (4.3%) and female sterilization (3.0%). Condom usage is rather low with only 1.2% using the male condom.

According to a 2012 report from the Population Reference Bureau, "the country stands out among Arab countries for a rapid increase in modern contraceptive use by both rural and urban women and for relatively low levels of "unmet need" for family planning—defined as the share of women who wish to delay or avoid pregnancy but are not using contraception."

However, progress can still be made. For one, Moroccan family planning heavily emphasizes the pill, and it does not focus on condoms (which can prevent both pregnancy and STD infection). For this reason, it is recommended that Moroccan family planning dedicates more resources to emphasizing other contraceptive methods. Furthermore, as the report states, "Moroccan family planning and maternal health services tend to focus on the needs of married women. Single men and women may avoid family planning and reproductive health services because of a lack of confidentiality as well as judgment by providers. Roudi-Fahimi argued that these programs should be expanded to serve unmarried couples who are sexually active—a relationship that is usually kept secret because it is not acceptable socially or legally."

What to Get & Where to Get It

• You can purchase birth control pills in pharmacies. Some brands you can expect to see are Microval, Neogynon, Stediril, Microgynon, Microgynon-30 and Minidril.
• For planned parenthood, (prescription/ shot or implant of hormonal contraceptives. + IUDs) there's the AMPF (Association Marocaine de Planning Familial). The fews are affordable (2 consultations: around 120dh, and the procedure and the device are free).

Costs

Some pills cost around 13 dh per month.

Emergency Contraception (Morning After Pill)

Important Notes: Emergency contraception may prevent pregnancy for three days (72 hours) and sometimes five days (120 hours) after unprotected sex. Take EC as soon as possible after unprotected sex. If you don't have access to dedicated EC, oral contraceptives can be used as replacement EC, but remember the following: 1) Only some contraceptives work as EC 2) Different contraceptives require different dosages and time schedules to work as EC 3) You must only use the first 21 pills in 28-day packs and 4) They may be less effective than dedicated EC. For general information on emergency contraceptives, click here and here.

What to Get & Where to Get It

Note: The longest-lasting EC is currently ellaOne. It lasts up to 5 days (120 hours) after unprotected sex. Check to see if your country carries ellaOne. If your country doesn't carry ellaOne, copper IUDs may also prevent pregnancy up to 5 days after unprotected sex. If none of these options are available, and it's been over 3 days since you had unprotected sex, you can still take EC, which may work up to 5 days. Note that EC pills are not 100% effective and should be taken as soon as possible.

Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs/STDs)

Important Notes - Learn about PEP and PrEP: If you think that you've been recently exposed to HIV (i.e. within 72 hours), seek out PEP (Post-Exposure Prophylaxis). It's a month-long treatment to prevent HIV infection after exposure, and it may be available in your city. Take PEP as soon as possible. For more information, click here. If you are at risk of HIV exposure, seek out PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis). It's a daily oral pill that can prevent HIV infection before exposure. To learn more about PrEP, click here.

What to Get & Where to Get It

Testing Facilities

• For STIs, and particularly AIDS and syphillis, there is the ALCS (Association de Lutte contre le SIDA). Testing and treatment are free there

Menstruation

Note: In addition to pads and tampons, you can also use menstrual cups and menstrual underwear for your period. To learn more about menstrual cups, click here. To learn more about menstrual underwear, click here.

Abortion

Important Note: There are two main types of abortions: medical (also known as the "abortion pill") and surgical (also known as "in-clinic"). For medical abortions, you take a pill to induce abortion. For surgical abortions, a procedure is performed to induce abortion. For general information about medical and surgical abortions, click here.