A survey of Morocco’s developmental trends since its independence reveals that the state adopted a policy of economic and social modernization beginning in the mid-1980s. In subsequent decades, Morocco seems to have fared well in comparison to other developing countries on some factors, such as unemployment and poverty reduction. However, in terms of developing the human capabilities of females and their labor market outcomes, Morocco’s performance has been less impressive: The paid labor force participation of women remains low, with a majority of working women employed in the agricultural sector. Likewise, female literacy in Morocco lags behind developing and regional comparators: The country’s female illiteracy rate was an appalling 87% in rural areas and 49% in urban areas as of 2005. The objective of this research is to examine the role of women in the nation’s development strategy since the 1980s. Utilizing official governmental and non-governmental reports and scholarly literature, I study the policies and mechanisms in place that address women’s literacy and employability in Morocco (in the formal non-agriculture sector). These are then compared with their policy counterparts in Iraq during the 1970s, a period that was characterized by high economic growth, rising investment levels and where the state deliberately attempted to enroll females into education and integrate them into the paid labor force. We do this in an attempt to solve the apparent paradox: Literature indicates that significant efforts have been made in Morocco especially since the 1990s to promote adult literacy as a whole, but after two decades there remains a striking disparity in the literacy rates between males and females. The results reveal the constraints and limitations of both Moroccan and Iraqi policies to enhance women’s literacy and labor participation, including how state policies themselves can be constrained by a desire to achieve multiple and divergent ends.