Moroccan Association of Textile eyes hemp as future of industry

The Moroccan Association of Textile and Clothing Industries (AMITH) announced this Tuesday its strategic roadmap “Textile 2035, a vision, convictions,” aiming to make the local industry a global market leader by 2035 while adopting the new brand, called “Dayem Morocco.”

Dayem Morocco, in line with the new development model, means sustainability, aiming to adopt eco-friendly habits, including textile industry made of bioproducts such as Hemp and wool as well as recycling and reusing tissue waste.

The Vice-president of the Moroccan Association of Textile and Clothing Industries (AMITH), Jalil Skali answered Hespress English’s question, saying “once the association will get approval for the use of hemp, we will adopt it for our new brand Dayem by 2035,” he said, adding, “Hemp was mostly used in the 90s, it was known by its high-quality, sustainability, resistance, and it is also fireproof,” he specified.

“The adoption of the hemp-made textile industry will make the country a global market leader, with a product that is 100% based in Morocco,” he added.

The Director of the Moroccan Association of Textile and Clothing Industries (AMITH), Fatima-Zohra Alaoui told Hespress English in a statement, “Hemp is a sustainable plant within itself before its use, as it consumes little water compared to cotton, regenerates the soil, it is carbon-negative, as it absorbs CO2, which makes it useful for this industry while extracting THC,” she explained.

“Hemp could be used in many textile industries, mainly in home industry interior, like for the production of hemp-based tissues for sofa, carpets, curtains, which is preferred by hotels, as the plant is fireproof,” she said, adding, “Hemp could be used also for clothing items, such as T-shirts that are going to be of higher-quality, sustainability and resistance than a cotton T-shirt over time,” she specified.

“Hemp-based production will be useful as well for the National defense’s equipment, including uniforms and tents,” she added.

AMITH’s main goal is to develop local production as well as reposition Made in Morocco’s products, including the new brand Dayem Morocco by 2035 in order to make it a global market leader, but also requires the state’s support for the achievement of its future goals.

AMITH’s vice president Skali said “the country has a big potential, and the textile industry was able to switch its production into the manufacturing of Made in Morocco masks during the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said, adding, “the sector plays a key role in Morocco’s GDP, as it hires more than 189 000 people, most of them are women and youth with no diploma, with a total of 1628 companies, reaching MAD50.48 billion of the country’s turnover and was able to reach MAD36.5 billion in terms of exports, and MAD15.88 billion of the added value,” he added.

The association was also able to adapt to the circumstances related to the pandemic, especially during the total lockdown by adopting industry 4.0, including digital tools for virtual meetings and e-commerce platforms, and will hold an international textile fair for its new edition of “Maroc in Mode,” set to take place in March 2022.

By 2035, AMITH aims to reach MAD60 billion in terms of exports, as well as attract new markets, namely in North America and Northern Europe with 20% of total exports.