The Mohammed VI Institute for the training of Imāms-Murshidīn and Murshidāt: Invigorating religious governance, gender policy, and Morocco’s international relations

The Mohammed VI Institute for the Training of Imāms-Murshidīn and Murshidāt has become a cornerstone of Morocco’s restructuring of the religious sector following the Casablanca terrorist attacks on May 16, 2003. The state established the Institute to regulate the religious sector by standardizing the recruitment and training of religious professionals. The integration of female religious guides (murshidāt) is officially presented as a state strategy to advance gender policy in the religious domain. Internationally, the Institute serves as an instrument for consolidating Morocco’s diplomatic relations, especially in Africa. By exporting its religious model, Morocco relies on religious diplomacy to strengthen its ties with several countries, hence projecting an image of religious-political stability and credible religious expertise. Drawing on observation, interviews, and qualitative content analysis of official documents, royal discourse, and media reports, this article examines how the Institute is deployed within Morocco’s post-5/16 religious policy, particularly by showcasing its promotion of a moderate religious narrative, gender inclusivity, and religious diplomacy. However, the Institute has become a state mechanism to securitize the religious domain, consolidate its monopoly over religious discourse, and promote its official interpretation of Islamic orthodoxy, which may sit uneasily with the regime’s professed commitment to tolerance, plurality, and moderation.