Participants at a meeting on the crafts and arts of thuya wood called on Wednesday, in Essaouira, for the implementation of a clear action plan for the promotion and protection of this sector.

The participants in the 1st Provincial Meeting on the crafts and arts of thuya wood, organised under the theme "The art of thuya wood in Essaouira: the profession between the glory of the past and hope for the future", called for making the promotion of the sector and the improvement of the living conditions of artisans a priority for local development.

For Hassan Chamis, president of the Chamber of Crafts for the Marrakech-Safi region, the art of thuya wood constitutes an added value and one of the foundations of the province's economic and social structure, just as it represents an invaluable heritage that must be preserved and revalued so that it can accompany national and international socio-economic changes.

Unfortunately, he lamented, the global crisis has had a negative impact on the incomes of artisans in this sector and this profession.

The Chamber of Crafts for the Marrakech-Safi region has put in place an ambitious action plan for the 2016-2020 period aimed at breathing new life into this sector and supporting it so that it regains its former lustre, he assured.

The governor of the Essaouira province, Jamal Makhtatar, noted that this meeting constitutes an important step towards being able to provide clear answers capable of preserving this heritage.

This meeting aims to draw up a roadmap that defines the priorities and obstacles to the promotion of the sector in relation to the global crisis that has hit the tourism and craft sectors hard, he indicated, adding that professionals in the sector are called upon to be equipped with a clear vision for the promotion of the sector, which must be presented to the Regional Council of Marrakech-Safi during the development of its regional development programme.

Organised by the Chamber of Crafts for the Marrakech-Safi region and the provincial directorate of Crafts in Essaouira in partnership with professionals in the thuya wood crafts and arts sector in Essaouira, this meeting is part of the festivities celebrating the Throne Day and the activities celebrating the National Craft Week of 2016.

The programme for this meeting includes presentations by experts on themes relating to "Environmental protection and the rationalisation of raw materials", "Thuya production techniques and chains: reality and perspectives", "The importance of standards and quality in the marketing of thuya wood products", "The importance of design in the valorisation of thuya wood products", "The role of international cooperation in the promotion and preservation of heritage crafts: the profession and arts of thuya wood as an example", "Innovation in the craft sector - the technical support centre as an example".

The city of Essaouira has been known since antiquity for its thuya, this small tree that grows in abundance in the region. Wood artisans who excel in cabinetmaking, marquetry, and inlay work have known how to exploit, through the generations, the remarkable aesthetic aspect of thuya wood to manufacture articles of great beauty (chessboards, small boxes, frames, tables, chests of drawers, desks, chairs, chandeliers, bedroom sets, trunks) which are highly prized by foreign and national tourists due to their design, which is difficult to equal.