Mohammed Amine DADDA
Founder and President of The TIMENDOTES Association

Mohammed Amine Dadda is the founder of The TIMENDOTES association. His passion and conviction are rooted in his deep belief in the need to create more equitable societies. By dedicating his time and experience to it, he hopes to support people living in difficult situations and give the tools and access to improve their lives. 

Amine is a French-Moroccan citizen, born in 1984 in Kenitra, Morocco. After moving to France at the age of eighteen, he obtained a Bachelor’s degree at Euromed Marseille School of Management, Bastia campus. In 2009, he continued his studies in Paris and obtained a Master’s degree in Consulting and in Organization and Management of Social Innovations.

Working for over ten years in the fashion and luxury sector. He has built an extensive network and has gained extensive experience in quality control and production requirements for the luxury market. In 2016, he co-founded The Kalhath Institute (India). The Institute is a charitable trust that is recognized for its innovative work with talented young embroiderers.

With this experience, combined with his training and his passion for social innovation, Amine DADDA has a360-degree vision of the importance of sfifa card weaving in today’s Morocco and to benefit the TIMENDOTES association.

Thus, Amine has worked for many years in close collaboration with Moroccan master craftsmen, forging deep links and deepening his knowledge of card weaving, its history and its techniques.

« These people master a craft with great potential, but it is in danger of disappearing because they do not know how to develop it enough to provide for their families. Participating in the preservation of this know–how will allow craftsmen to receive an education, pursue a professional career and achieve economic independence«  (sic).

He believes that arts education combined with a strong community is a valuable tool make artisans understand their role in heritage preservation and the enormous value of their work for the conservation and development of this craft. His early work, carried out with women artisans in the south-eastern region of Morocco (Tahnaoute) showed the effectiveness of such a pedagogical approach that combines education around cultural heritage and technical training. Enrichment of the local community’s economics, social and cultural quality of life is inseparable from this approach.

Women artisans are at the heart of the project and Amine emphasizes the importance of helping them become self-sufficient in the creation of handicrafts and control their marketing, sales and finances.

A key aspect of his vision is to encourage links between traditional Moroccan culture and contemporary artistic practices, while training artisans can meet and benefit from the demands of the 21st-century market.

Amine’s favourite thing about Morocco ? “Its culture, rich in diversity and open to all” (sic).

M. Dadda Mohamed
Treasurer of the TIMENDOTES Association

Mr. Dadda Mohamed was born on 15 May 1955 in Taza and grew up with his maternal grandfather, a former soldier in the French army.

At the age of twenty-seven, Mr. Dadda Mohamed married and had six children from that marriage.

He began his career at the age of 18 at the Société de Développement Agricole as manager of a 140-hectare orange tree farm. He then continued his studies in evening classes to join the Moroccan Sugar Company in Casablanca and, two years later, he changed jobs by joining the Ministry of Equipment as head of the public domain and expropriation in Kenitra. He was in charge of the Arabization and updating of the legal documents for the construction of the Rabat-Larache highway at the end of 1978.

On July 2nd, 1979, he joined the National Office of Electricity. He then progressed in his career and becamea human resourcess executive until his retirement on January 1st, 2013.

Mr. Dadda Mohammed has distinguished himself in the field volunteering, notably by founding an association called Hassania (focused on culture and theatre). He was also a member of the board of directors of the Kenitra Film Club and secretary-general of the culture and leisure committee of the Kenitra Sports Club.

He explains that « in (his) experience, volunteering improves brain health and combats social isolation for older adults, and these benefits more than outweigh the countless hours spent serving the community. »

In addition to voluntary service, he has heavily involved in the defense of workers’ rights. In 1984, he was elected union delegate of the staff of the Kenitra and the Gharb region thermal power plant . In November 1985, he was elected representative of social works at the national level.

Mr. Dadda Mohammed brings his wealth of experience gained through decades of selfless work and service to the role of Treasurer of the TIMENDOTES Association.

He is convinced that « the objectives and activities of the TIMENDOTES Association are important because, in addition to the training of sfifa weavers and the safeguarding this know-how, the association will enable the creation of several training centers throughout Morocco.

He hopes that through collaboration with designers, and artists, sfifa will be better known and recognized as a fundamental part of Moroccan heritage.

Mariem Dadda
General Secretary of the TIMENDOTES Association

Mariem Dadda is a graduate of the Kenitra National School of Commerce and Management with a major in marketing and commercial action. She also holds a degree in economic and market research from the University of Pau and the Pays de l’Adour. 

Madame Dadda is currently a stay-at-home mother based in Haute-Corsica, Bastia. She joined the TIMENDOTES Association in November 2022, and she is proudly passionate about the Association’s objective, which is to open the doors for rural women to enjoy sustainable and fairly compensated livelihoods while maintaining and respecting their principles to improve their living conditions. 

Madame Dadda hopes the TIMENDOTES Association will be able to guarantee the future success of a community of responsible and serious craftswomen who love this knowledge and become creative practitioners in their own right.

She also believes that TIMENDOTES, thanks to its collaborations with a wide variety of people, including craftspeople in other fields, designers and artists, « can create a synergy between authenticity and modernity, for use in different sectors such as fashion and interior design on an international scale ».

She adds: « I’m happy to be part of the TIMENDOTES Association, which has enabled the traditional sfifa to find a place and recognition within the international luxury arena.

Her favourite thing about Morocco is « The hospitality and generosity of the Moroccan people ».

Hasnaa Adnass
President of the TIMENDOTES Association

Hasnaa Adnass is 33 years old and from the Amazigh community. She speaks fluent Amazigh and Arabic and has a working knowledge of French.

She was born in Dawar Amnas and studied up until the 5th grade. Madame Adnass now lives in Tahnaout, where she moved after marriage. Tragically, her husband passed away, and she lives with her two daughters at her in-laws’ home. She receives the standard state aid for widows of 700 dirhams monthly and cannot contribute much to the family budget. She works at home, doing carpet weaving and sewing whenever she can find work. A friend taught her weaving when she left school.

The family must budget for the necessary expenses of electricity and water bills. Still, she has an additional responsibility of purchasing medicine and health care for one of her daughters, who suffers from delayed bone growth. Craft and being an artisan are important to her because she says it can « open a door for those who cannot continue their studies. They can succeed in the crafts. » She knows a little about the sfifa used in traditional dress like caftans and djellabas. Craft is something to be proud of and to future for the future. Hasnaa’s greatest dream is to be independent and « To educate my daughters so that they do not lack anything. »

She hopes that their situation will have improved in 5 years and reflects that she would tell her younger self, « Don’t depend on anyone, even your husband, because life is full of surprises. »

Najia El Farssi
President of the IMINOUZERG cooperative and partner of the TIMENDOTES Association

Madame El Farssi is 44 years old, and she speaks Arabic and Amazigh. She was born in Ourika and now lives in Dawar Ayt Radi with her parents and brothers.

She is the president of a cooperative and makes randa to order in small quantities. This work is vital to her as she has to contribute to family expenses and the costs of medicines for her ageing parents. Her mother also weaves, and her brothers work in agriculture. She expresses that she is happy to learn new skills, and she learnt randa at a women’s club for two years, receiving a certificate at the end.

Of the sfifa, Madame El Farssi says it is a luxury item and that she is happy to learn the new skill of weaving it. Craft allows her to learn other skills and teach these to others, too. She hopes that the future will bring better things. She aspires to represent craft in the best way possible, saying, “Who knows where I will be in 5 years?” She adds, “The advice I would give to my younger self would be to learn skills and depend only on yourself.”

Mhamad Bouzroud
Master artisans who resides in Casablanca

Mhamad Bouzroud is 36 years old and lives in Casablanca with his wife and two young daughters.
Mhamad Bouzroud speaks with emotion and great intensity about the hardships he has endured despite his exceptional craft skills. He recalls,

“My father taught me the art of sfifa weaving at home from an early age. I worked for 9 years in people’s homes. Many of us lived in the same house, where we worked, ate and washed our own clothes from an early age. We also worked in stores and slept up on the mezzanine (sadda). We worked without time limits when we had a lot of orders. We had to finish the job before we could rest. Sometimes, even when we wanted to take a break for a coffee, they wouldn’t let us. We had to work even when we were sick, and if we said we were ill, we were told that we weren’t in hospital and that those who were ill should go home.”

The creation of the Timendotes Association has enabled us to pass on our know-how with dignity. This means that we pass on our know-how in a professional manner. The association has the raw materials, the equipment and, above all, a room dedicated to the work. All this has been made possible thanks to the Association’s members, notably the president, Meriam Dadda, who is responsible for follow-up, Mohamed Dadda for financial management, and Hasna and Najia on site.

M Bouzroud continues, “Working with Mohammed Amine Dadda has enabled us to gain the respect of people as artisans. It’s the first time someone has taken our private life into consideration. Thanks to him, we now have housing security, social security cover and are treated like human beings. Nobody thinks about us like they used to. When we fall ill, nobody asks about us, not even a simple phone call.”

“What I’d like to see the association do is regulate the SFIFA weaver’s trade. It is discriminated against because not all craftsmen are of the same level, and the one who underestimates himself and offers work at low prices, even without expertise to intermediaries, becomes the master craftsman. I hope that through this work, we can find a new growth market where we can work safely, and establish contacts with responsible people who represent our commitment and efforts and who pay us fairly for our work. I also hope that we will no longer suffer discrimination from other members of the trade, especially middlemen and seamstresses.”

“Before the COVID-19 pandemic, we worked to support ourselves, and everything was fine. In 2020, I realised the value of everyone. I’ve worked with people for 20 years, and I’ll never forget Mohammed Amine Dadda’s support. Since then, I’ve come to see him as a true brother. Thanks to him, I decided to continue in this field after the pandemic, because, at that point, I had almost given up. None of the people I’ve come into contact with deserves for me to sacrifice my life, my health, endure sleepless nights, working longer than necessary so that others can pocket 90% of the profits.

I love my family, my wife, my daughters, and my regular meetings with Amine where we discuss new patterns, ideas and upcoming projects.