76 PERSPECTIVES ON BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS | VOL 42 | 2024 tion policies, conducted by a nation-state based on the dogma of ‘Arab-Islamism’” (Congrès Mondial Amazigh, 2016, p. 2), in which the government actively neglects the ethnic diversity of its population by denying the contribution of Imazighen people: its history, language, and civilizational values. Residents in the Rifan region of Al Hoceima describe the feeling of being trapped, both by physical boundaries and by rampant unemployment and the symbolic inferiority of being Amazigh within an Arab-identified nation state. According to various interviews with the Moroccan diaspora community, the division between Amazigh and Arab Moroccans is noteworthy. Government officials reinforce this attitude of indifference regarding the preservation of Tamazight, claiming that incorporating it in urban education would be of “no use” or an obstacle to academic and social success. Moreover, the Congrès Mondial Amazigh (2016) further asserts that the Imazighen, particularly in rural areas, are left at the margins of society, neglected by the government, while Arabist ideology in power and marginalization of Amazigh in the negative light of “poverty and backwardness” are rampant in urban centers. Solutions The conscious preservation of Amazigh culture in Morocco is a two-pronged approach that should include heightened efforts both to celebrate and preserve aspects of Amazigh culture nationally, especially in urban centers, and to improve the public infrastructure and services in rural areas where the culture is already thriving. To achieve the first, the state must meet with Imazighen community leaders and attend to their specific concerns and demands regarding cultural appreciation and preservation. The second can only be achieved by a state commitment to fulfill its existing promises to rural areas by allocating funding and setting milestones for specific projects, including transportation, health care, and education. To be successful, this twofold approach will require a cultural shift in the sentiment around Amazigh culture and language that can be achieved only through media and state facilitation of social and cultural influence on the institutional level. To achieve widespread Amazigh recognition and appreciation, the government should first ratify the International Labour Organization Convention on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples’ Rights in Practice (2009) to ensure that the rights of the Indigenous Peoples, who make up the majority of the population, are protected. In implementation, this would ensure that the government develops, maintains, and respects Indigenous institutions for the purpose of preserving customs and traditions. Mohammed VI’s government founded the Royal Institute of Amazigh Culture in 2001 for the purpose of safeguarding and promoting Amazigh culture and languages. Ratifying the International Labour Organization convention would further entrench the importance of this institution at the government level. The convention also protects the Indigenous Peoples’ right to education, enforces the quality of that education, and ensures equality and adequacy of health services and social security. It also outlines the rights to natural resources and compensation for governmental resource use, the right to development, the concept of tribal land and its use, application of tribal law, providing equitable access to the justice system, and cross-border contact and collaboration. Ratifying this convention would add a layer of protection for Indigenous Peoples’ rights and cultural preservation as well as accountability for the state in following through with its promises to improve the development of rural Morocco. Additionally, while the recognition of Tamazight in the constitution following the 2011 Arab Spring was a much-needed advancement, it was essentially a move to silence the activists and quell the uprisings without invoking violence. The Moroccan government has a habit of creating macro plans and setting goals without outlining the specific channels via which they will get done, as highlighted by the plan to integrate Tamazight in the education system. There need to be amendments to this constitutional clause that outline concrete ways of implementing Tamazight into society and upholding it to the same status as Arabic in all regions of Morocco, rather than limiting these implementations to the rural regions. Since a majority of the population is of Amazigh descent, there should be efforts to preserve the culture in different facets of life. Resolving specific development shortcomings is equally as important as cultural recognition for rural Imazighen citizens. The Moroccan Parliament has already recognized its shortcomings with regard to rural infrastructure. In December 2023, Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch emphasized that road and path projects, as well as the program for reducing territorial and social disparities, are endeavors that will be prioritized in Morocco, especially after the 2023 earthquake highlighted the lacking infrastructure. The goals of these projects are to reduce the spatial and social disparities and build an infrastructure that puts rural communities on a real path of sustainable development. Improving roads and transportation systems will have contributed to raising the level
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