At the Northwestern corner of the African continent, Morocco, half the size of Egypt (446,500 km2) is home to roughly 30,000,000 people. Ninety-eight per cent of the population is Muslim. Fifty-three per cent live in urban centres. However, the country has just 300 psychiatrists working in academic, as well as private and public hospitals.

To implement an anti-stigma programme in a country where psychiatric services are so heavily burdened, the World Psychiatric Association (WPA) Advisor, Dr Driss Moussaoui, and Local Action Group Coordinator, Dr Nadia Kadri, enlisted the services of a variety of different professionals, including a member of Parliament, a key representative from the Moroccan Ministry of Health, a psychologist, psychiatric nurses, and representatives from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) such as Chourouq (a family support group for relatives of those living with mental illness) and Nassim (a group dedicated to prevention of substance abuse).

In December 2000, the group established itself as a national programme, called IDMAJ. Both the medical media and pharmaceutical industry have provided support for the initiative in the last 4 years.

Research

As with the work in Egypt, IDMAJ sought to establish a baseline of knowledge and attitudes regarding schizophrenia, and the use of the Arabic term ‘Al-Fusam’. Results in Morocco mirror those in Egypt.

Family members and individuals living with schizophrenia

As in other developing countries, research in Morocco has indicated significant involvement of the family in the lives of patients.