It’s another day in Rabat! As our days have begun winding down, I’ve noticed myself developing more of a routine in the morning and becoming more comfortable finding may way around the medina to CCCL (although I still keep Apple Maps on just in case!). In the morning we visited the National Association for Digital Development (ANDD), and then in the afternoon had the chance to speak with some of the women who have benefited from this organization.

ANDD is a relatively new non-profit organization focused on bridging the gap between potential and opportunity in Morocco. ANDD offers mentoring and network opportunities, as well as educational programing based on digital tools (like Excel, CapCut, Instagram). These programs help provide female entrepreneurs, undereducated women, and university graduates with the skills needed to achieve their goals (whether that be to start their own business, get accepted into a certain program, or etc). We had visited the Moroccan Center for Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship (MCISE) yesterday, which is another non-profit in Morocco working to support entrepreneurs. MCISE offers similar mentoring, networking, and educational opportunities; however, the organization specifically targets these offerings towards entrepreneurs working in startups that solve social problems. ANDD is less concerned with the type of business an entrepreneur wants to create, and more so focused on improving the skills of the entrepreneur themselves. I feel like this gives ANDD more of an advantage over MCISE because it broadens the pool of people they could support.

Earlier in the trip we had also learned about The Anou Cooperative, a collection of female artisan groups across Morocco working to reduce the middlemen needed in a transaction so they can retain more of the profit from each sale. Anou has created its own digital platform for these women’s cooperatives to use to sell their products, which could be a threat to ANDD. At the same time, because through the programing of ANDD is teaching entrepreneurs skills to sell their products independently on platforms like Facebook or Instagram, ANDD also poses a threat for Anou.

After breaking for a really amazing lunch at Dar Naji restaurant, we went to speak with some of the women ANDD has supported. All the women spoke very proudly about their businesses and the skills they learned during ANDD programing. After each spoke about their business, they would pass their phone around the room so we could see how developed their Instagram pages for their businesses have become (largely thanks to ANDD). It was very inspiring and another wonderful reminder of how impactful the changing entrepreneurship ecosystem in Morocco is becoming for people living here.

I’m hoping to head for one last walk around the medina to see if there is anything else I might want to buy before I leave! It’s crazy how fast the days are going. I’m excited to see what tomorrow will bring!