Navigating Urban Spaces: A Policy Analysis of Young Women's Political Identity and Participation in Morocco, 2021–2026

This policy analysis examines the evolving political identity and participation of young women in Morocco’s urban centres between 2021 and 2026. It identifies a critical disconnect between formal, institutional political frameworks and the lived realities of young urban women, whose political engagement increasingly manifests through informal, digital, and issue-based activism. Employing a rigorous qualitative methodology, the study analyses policy documents from key government initiatives, including the National Youth Strategy, alongside data from 24 semi-structured interviews with young women activists and civil society organisation leaders in Casablanca and Rabat. The findings demonstrate that while national policies rhetorically support inclusion, they inadequately address specific socio-spatial barriers—such as gendered access to public space and digital inequities—that constrain young women’s political agency. The article contends that effective policy must move beyond symbolic quotas to recognise the hybrid political identities emerging in African urban contexts, where online mobilisation and community-level action are paramount. This analysis contributes to redefining political participation through an African feminist lens, urging policymakers to develop more nuanced, inclusive frameworks that validate and harness the diverse ways young urban women enact citizenship and shape their political futures.