Women on boards: what the 40% threshold changes for companies

40% women on boards: a simple quota or a real turning point for governance?

Sheryn Ziani unpacks, for Le Matin, the 40% threshold for women on boards of directors and supervisory boards. The threshold is set by Law No. 17-95, as amended by Law No. 19-20.

For the CSR & Sustainability Partner at Baker Tilly in Morocco, “companies are moving towards this deadline at different speeds.” According to the Moroccan Institute of Directors, women held an average of 31% of board seats in 2025. The threshold must be met at the first ordinary general meeting after 1 January 2027, the one that approves the 2026 accounts. She advises companies to review their board now and map upcoming mandate expiries.

She also explains why the deadline means rethinking the skills boards look for. She sets out how to widen the pool of women directors beyond those already in place, and why presence is not enough: at the end of 2024, only 9% of boards were chaired by a woman. Her message: “Compliance in 2027 is not an end point.”