Morocco has launched the third edition of its “Moroccan Handicraft Treasures” program, a nationwide initiative designed to rescue traditional crafts at risk of disappearing and to pass ancestral skills on to younger generations. The ceremony was held Tuesday in Rabat under the high patronage of King Mohammed VI and organized by the Secretariat of State in Charge of Traditional Handicrafts and the Social and Solidarity Economy, in partnership with UNESCO.
Created in 2023, the program preserves Morocco’s intangible cultural heritage by pairing young apprentices with master artisans whose crafts have been officially recognized as endangered. Many of these crafts—including fine leatherwork, precision wood carving, metal engraving, and saddle-making—survive today through only a handful of remaining practitioners.
Secretary of State Lahcen Saadi said the program is already delivering results. “We have safeguarded more than 32 crafts that were at risk of extinction. Only four master artisans still practiced them. Through this new edition, we will train more than 350 young instructors across all these disciplines,” he noted.
Sharaf Ahmed, Director of the UNESCO Office for the Maghreb, highlighted how essential manual craftsmanship remains to Morocco’s heritage. “Participants were shown, for example, that a traditional saddle cannot function without hand-crafted leather. These techniques rely entirely on human skill. We commend the ministry’s efforts in preserving knowledge that could otherwise vanish.”
The initiative is part of Morocco’s broader strategy to protect, revitalise, and modernise its craft sector, which employs hundreds of thousands and represents a major cultural and economic asset. With UNESCO’s support, the program aims not only to preserve endangered crafts but also to create sustainable livelihoods by equipping youth with specialized skills for the future.
