World Bank lends Morocco $500 mln to expand early education

The World Bank announced on Friday a $500 million programme to support cash-strapped Morocco in plans to expand access to pre-primary education and improve its quality. Despite Morocco having universal access to primary schools, in 2017 only 50 percent of children aged four and five attended pre-school facilities, the World Bank said in a statement.

Morocco increased the education budget by 5.4 billion dirhams ($561 million) in 2019 to 68 billion dirhams as it seeks to boost access and improve infrastructure, especially in remote areas. Morocco expects its treasury debt to hit 66% of gross domestic product in 2019, from 65.8% in 2018.

Total public debt is seen rising to 81.8% of GDP in 2019 from 81.4 % in 2018 to, according to central bank figures.