Hanbel

Aicha Lhaimer

Aicha was born in 1960 in the village of Ait Hamza where she has lived her whole life, never having the opportunity to attend school. She is married and is the mother of five children. As a young girl she learned how to weave from her mother. At the time of her youth, she was expected to take care of household chores and join the artisan community. Like the other members of the coop, she hopes that the coop grows and develops and is able to sell its products throughout global markets.

Itto Afkir

Afkir born in 1950 in the village of Ait Ihya, where she has lived her whole life. Earlier in her life she was married and had one daughter, who has now completed her education and is training to become a social worker. Afkir attended school for two years, but at that time, it was not common or accepted for girls to attain an education. Instead, Afkir was expected by her family, especially her father, to learn household duties and animal husbandry skills. As a nine year old girl, she learned the skills of weaving from her mother. She was married twice, the first time when she was 16 to a 60 year old man, who she then divorced. The second time she was married was when she was 32 to a man that she also divorced. At the time of her second divorce, she needed to devote her time to her ill parents while her husband expected her to attend to his family. Afkir has extensive experience in weaving, first with her mother and then with her growing family, and she has earned multiple awards from the Ministry of Handicraft. She hopes that her cooperative continues to grow and develop while the women of the village gain access to larger market spaces. Like she taught many women to weave, she hopes that the women of her cooperative will too teach the next generation of weavers to carry on the tradition of weaving.