What explains youth unemployment in Morocco? A look at Moroccans not in education, employment, or training

In many regions of the world, the persistent, and growing, proportion of young people who are currently Not in Employment, Education or Training - a group increasingly referred to as NEET - is of global concern. This is no less true of Morocco: about 30 percent of the Moroccan population between age 15 to 24 are currently NEET. Drawing from various rounds of Moroccan labor force surveys, this chapter contributes to understanding the complex dynamics of labor markets in developing countries. First, it identifies the socioeconomic determinants of Morocco's NEETs. Second, employing a Markov's chain in the context of labor market analysis, the chapter describes how the condition of NEETs changes over time. One striking, and worrisome, pattern that emerges from this analysis is that a majority of the NEETs remain outside either the labor market or education, with very little chance of moving out of their situation. Their chronic stagnancy confirms the powerful effect that initial conditions have on determining young people's future outcomes.