Morocco: construction sites reconnect with ancestral traditions

The Agadir cable car is the only one in Morocco. It is a state-of-the-art means of transport to reach a citadel which has just been restored after two years of work. Indeed, the kasbah was destroyed by an earthquake in 1960. The architect Salima Naji was chosen for restoration. She wanted traditional architecture and ancestral methods that respect the environment. On the construction site, the materials are, as far as possible, local. “With the inflation of steel and the inflation of concrete, obviously all these questions have become crucial”says Salima Naji.

The workers are proud to rediscover the techniques of the ancients. “I like heritage, working on monuments. It requires working with dedication and righteousness, like the old ones, so that it holds up over the long term”says Samih Tayibbimaster mason on the building site. On the visitor side, everyone seems convinced. salima Naji fights to prove that another architecture is possible and multiplies the projects. The use of local wood also makes it possible to better maintain the palm grove.