Our interpreters have proved to be a wealth of knowledge.
On day one we were assigned our interpreter, Monim. From Morocco, he has global experience, having lived abroad in France and the UK. He holds dual graduate degrees and is an expert linguist and translator. Additionally, as we drove to Rabat we came to know him and felt comfortable raising more sensitive cultural questions about Morocco. We later learned from Minim that he is of the Berber (Amazigh) ethnic group, an ancient tribal community stretching across North Africa. His knowledge and explanations of the political, historical and cultural conditions in Morocco was invaluable as he placed it into context. The Amazigh identity is important to the policy themes that we are exploring in Morocco because it predates Christianity, Islam, and French-Colonialism.
The second interpreter, Ms. Imane, also proved to be a valuable local source for understanding the perspectives of Moroccans and their current day-to-day concerns. Born in Marrakesh, she moved with her family to Casablanca (Casa) when she was very young. She’s now lived in Casa for over 25 years and has personal experience being part of the local Moroccan public and private school systems. Her insight into the nuances of public versus private school educations in Morocco proved to fill many gaps in the minds of the team, opening the aperture to otherwise marginalized current and future security concerns.
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