She says she wants to “give hope” to young people. Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri on Tuesday became the first female head of government in Morocco. A look back at the career of this 50-year-old trained lawyer, who had already been the first woman elected mayor of Marrakech.

Published on: 09/30/2026 - 11:01 Modified on: 09/30/2026 - 11:04

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She embodies renewal in a country faced with profound economic and social expectations. The first woman called to lead a Moroccan government, Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri, who had already been the first female mayor of Marrakech, says she wants to "give hope" to young people.

Coming from a family of notables from Marrakech, this 50-year-old brunette woman, often seen behind her dark-rimmed glasses, was also elected deputy during last Wednesday's legislative elections.

See alsoFatima Ezzahra El Mansouri appointed head of the Moroccan government

Mayor of Marrakech at 33

A lawyer by training, Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri entered politics by joining the Movement of All Democrats, founded by royal advisor Fouad Ali El Himma. This movement then served as the basis for the creation, in 2008, of the Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM).

Under the colors of this formation, she was elected, at just 33 years old, mayor of Marrakech, her hometown, in 2009, a first in the history of the tourist city.

Two years later, she won a seat as a deputy and rose through the ranks within the PAM, where she is currently national coordinator.

“I started politics at the local level. I draw my trust from the citizens of Marrakech who trusted me,” she said recently in a podcast.

Her political trajectory experienced a setback after the loss of the presidency of the municipal council of Marrakech, which went to the Islamists of the PJD in 2015. But in 2021, she was again elected at the head of the town hall of the city, which has more than a million inhabitants.

She was also appointed Minister of Housing in the outgoing government of Aziz Akhannouch.

In search of a government coalition

Appointed head of government on Tuesday September 29 by Mohammed VI, after the victory of her party in the legislative elections, Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri will have to tackle political negotiations. Without an absolute majority, it will have to deal with other parties to form a government coalition. His experience at the head of the collective leadership of his party, the PAM, could constitute an asset in the search for compromise.

Several other projects await it, such as the increase in unemployment and the cost of living as well as social disparities, which particularly hit young people. “Young people are going through a crisis and we must provide them with answers. We want to give them hope, not only through speeches, but also through concrete solutions,” she declared during the campaign.

The vote was held less than two months after the Ceuta migration crisis, which once again shone the spotlight on the malaise of Moroccan youth. At the end of July, tens of thousands of migrants, the majority Moroccans, illegally reached the Spanish enclave of Ceuta from the neighboring Moroccan town of Fnideq.

And last year, a collective called GenZ 212, with anonymous founders, emerged on social networks, organizing demonstrations almost daily for two weeks to demand better public education and health services.

During her mandate, Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri will also have to carry out the co-organization of the 2030 World Cup and the draft autonomy plan for the disputed territory of Western Sahara.

With AFP

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