Table of Contents
NOS news•today, 07:41
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Samira Jadir
Morocco journalist
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Samira Jadir
Morocco journalist
From carpets to furniture and jewellery; trading on the craft market earns millions of euros in Morocco every year. But the makers don’t even earn the minimum wage. Different groups are trying to fight this inequality in the North African country.
In the mountain town of M’rirt, women make carpets that are easily sold by European web shops for hundreds or thousands of euros. One of them is Aicha, 63 years old. “Life is just weaving,” she said, laughing. She learned from her parents and for the past 35 years this has been her main source of income.
It was only in the last few years that she finally found out how much her rugs are selling for. “When I found out, I thought: what bastards,” says Aicha. On average, she saves around twenty euros on a carpet she worked on for a month. “Sometimes I was happy if I could recoup the cost of the stuff through sales.”
New platforms
About 70 percent of the artisans who weave traditional carpets are women who live in the Atlas Mountains, one of the poorest areas in Morocco. Aicha is now working with the Belgian-Moroccan Fatima Zohra Ait El Maati. She founded ‘Tayri’, a digital platform that allows women like Aicha to gain insight into sales in Europe and thus benefit from their work.
“These women don’t have a network and they don’t speak the language of their customers,” Ait El Maati explains. The fact that her parents came from the area around M’rirt was an important source of motivation for her high- “We can say from Europe that women in this region are at a disadvantage, but I also wanted to do something concrete.”
Aicha continues the age-old tradition of carpet weaving in the Atlas Mountains:
A digital platform helps Aicha earn more with her rugs
Thanks to platforms like Tayri, producers no longer need to do business with an intermediary in Morocco. Apart from the income, it is also nice for Aicha that the communication is different because, according to her, the mediators are not always respectful.
Another platform that stands up for the rights of Moroccan artisans is the Anou collaboration. Through them, customers from all over the world can buy products directly online from the manufacturers. 29-year-old Hamza Cherif D’Ouezzan is the director of the stage, but he emphasizes that he is employed by the artisans: “For us, the artisans are the owners of the whole company . “
The six hundred artisans who joined Anou can communicate directly with potential customers online, so they are no longer dependent on intermediaries. The platform has been made as easy to use as possible, so that partners can place their products in the digital display on the website.
The government is failing
The Moroccan government is trying to manage the craft sector through the Ministry of Tourism, Craftsmen and the Social Economy and Solidarity. Cherif D’Ouezzan criticizes how his country deals with the craft sector. “Morocco depends on crafts, but why don’t craftsmen earn a minimum wage?” “
Figures from the Moroccan government show that the craft sector employs 2.4 million Moroccans. This makes it the second most important sector of the Moroccan economy in terms of number of jobs. In 2021, the government presented a strategy to protect this lucrative source of income in the future.
But according to Fatima Zohra, the opposite is happening now: “Weavers’ daughters no longer want to learn to weave. They see that their mothers have given up their health for a sector that is not profitable at all.”
Financially illiterate
According to Cherif D’Ouezzan, there is also a lack of control in Western countries on web shops that sell Moroccan crafts. “Many online stores advertise with the promise that the makers get a fair share of the profit, but no one verifies that.” He also believes that Moroccan artisans are not getting the recognition they deserve.
When Zohra buys a batch of carpet from Aicha, there is a brief discussion about the price. Aicha insists that Fatima Zohra will buy her rugs for a lower amount. In the end, Belgium can believe that it should not sell itself short. Aicha now brings out about five times more than before on the carpet.
For Cherif D’Ouezzan, Aicha’s laziness is well known: “In the communities where the artisans come, there is usually a kind of financial illiteracy. This changes quickly once ‘ s that they get access to the market and can set their own prices.”
2024-11-27 06:41:00
#Unpaid #Moroccan #carpet #makers #matters #hands
**In what ways can technology and innovation be leveraged to empower Moroccan carpet weavers, connecting them directly to global markets while preserving traditional skills and ensuring fair compensation? **
## Open-Ended Discussion Questions About Moroccan Carpet Weavers:
**I. Exploitation and Fairness:**
* Aicha finds out she makes very little profit on her carpets. What are the ethical implications of Western consumers buying hand-made goods while the artisans themselves remain financially marginalized?
* How can platforms like Tayri and Anou ensure truly fair compensation for Moroccan artisans while still remaining accessible to customers?
* **II.
The Role of Intermediaries:**
* The article talks about mediators between artisans and buyers sometimes being disrespectful. What are the potential benefits and drawbacks of traditional intermediary roles in the craft market?
* How can technology facilitate direct relationships between artisans and consumers while also recognizing the value of expertise and logistical support that intermediaries can provide?
**III. Government Responsibility:**
* The Moroccan government aims to protect the craft sector, but artisans criticize the lack of a minimum wage. Should governments intervene more actively in ensuring fair earnings for artisans, or should this be left to market forces?
* What responsibility do governments like Morocco’s have in fostering a thriving craft sector that empowers its practitioners?
**IV. Challenges Faced by Artisans:**
*
Aicha’s daughters are reluctant to continue the weaving tradition. What are the biggest challenges facing the next generation of Moroccan artisans, and how can these challenges be addressed?
* If financial illiteracy is a problem for artisans, what kind of educational initiatives could empower them to manage their finances effectively and negotiate fairer deals?
**V. Cultural Preservation:**
* The article highlights the potential loss of traditional weaving techniques. How can the evolving craft market balance commercial viability with the preservation of cultural heritage?
* What role can fair trade practices and ethical consumerism play in supporting the continuation of traditions like Moroccan rug weaving?
**VI. Consumer Responsibility:**
* As a consumer, what responsibility do you feel you have when buying handmade goods from developing countries? How can you ensure your purchases contribute to the well-being of the artisans?
* What questions should consumers ask themselves before buying a hand-crafted product to ensure its ethical origins and fair production practices?
