Moroccan government scholarship as a tool of educational public diplomacy

Morocco emerged as a key player in educational public diplomacy in Africa, using government-funded scholarships to attract Sub-Saharan African students as part of its broader foreign policy and soft power goals. Yet despite growing state investment in such programs across the Global South and North, empirical research on their effectiveness remains limited. Drawing on soft power and public diplomacy as its theoretical framework, this study examines the academic and sociocultural experiences of Sub-Saharan African students in Moroccan public universities through a mixed-methods survey of 108 students. Findings indicate moderate effectiveness, driven by high satisfaction with education quality and academic support, alongside persistent dissatisfaction with language support and sociocultural integration. Universities must address these gaps to strengthen long-term soft power outcomes