Access of Transgender Persons to Healthcare in Morocco: The Legal Vacuum and Conceptual Confusion as Mechanisms for Producing Health and Social Vulnerability
This field report monitors the impact of the legal vacuum and conceptual confusion between homosexuality and gender identity in the Moroccan context, and its repercussions on transgender persons’ enjoyment of their fundamental rights. Primarily focusing on the right to health and dignity, the report highlights how this confusion contributes to the perpetuation and continuation of discriminatory practices against the trans community.
The analysis is based on field interviews with 40 transgender individuals, in addition to the opinions of specialists and experts in the fields of medicine and mental health. The findings reveal that the absence of a clear legal definition of gender identity, coupled with the continuation of the punitive approach linked to issues of sexual orientation, contributes to producing a complex vulnerability. This environment drives some transgender persons to resort to hormone therapy outside of any official medical framework.
The results of the report show that this situation is not related to gender identity in itself, as much as it reflects an institutional gap between social reality and internationally adopted health standards. In 2019, the World Health Organization (WHO) adopted a new approach in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) that considers gender incongruence as part of human diversity. What was previously known as “gender identity disorders” was moved from the mental health disorders chapters to the “sexual health” category—a step aimed at reducing stigma and promoting a rights-based health approach.
However, this shift in international standards has not yet been accompanied by a clear legislative or institutional debate at the national level in Morocco. Consequently, the issue at hand is not related to the existence of a legal text that explicitly criminalizes gender transition, but rather to the absence of a clear regulatory framework governing the handling of gender identity issues within the health system. Practically, this situation is reflected in administrative difficulties and professional hesitation among some healthcare providers, in addition to the absence of official medical protocols for dealing with cases related to gender identity.
The report concludes that the continued conflation of sexual orientation and gender identity, alongside the legal and regulatory vacuum, not only leads to the perpetuation of social stigma but also limits the possibility of safe and equitable access to health services. This constitutes an actual violation of the right to health as recognized in international human rights standards.
Key Recommendations:
- Develop Official Protocols: The necessity of developing a national health protocol that defines the mechanisms for dealing with gender identity issues within the health system.
- Capacity Building: Enhancing the medical and social training of health professionals to allow for clear differentiation between sexual orientation and gender identity issues, thereby contributing to reducing stigma and improving the quality of healthcare.
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