Today, after the drums have quieted, the chants have faded, and all the traditional groups have withdrawn with the artists returning to their usual and routine rhythm, it is time to shed some light on certain aspects touching this major artistic event, especially the latest edition, the twenty-fourth edition of the National Festival of the “Ahidous” art, which was hosted by the rural commune of Ain Louh in the Ifrane province on July 18, 19, and 20, 2025.

While the Ministry of Culture considers “Ahidous” a fundamental element of the intangible Moroccan musical heritage and prioritizes its preservation, enhancement, and continuity through supporting the groups, poets, and creators who are considered the guardians of this heritage, the reality of the event, its scale, and the way it is managed suffer from many imbalances.

First, we must all acknowledge that the “High Patronage of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God assist and support him,” which the festival enjoys—beyond any exaggeration—requires all parties involved and following up, with all their material and moral capabilities, to develop and improve the event, as it is not just a passing occasion but an artistic and cultural meeting that should be a lever for the economic, social, and cultural development of the region and the province as a whole.

Of course, we will not delve into the details of this noticeable and worrying decline of the event, in which political hands and their intersections play a significant role, but it is worth mentioning that the National Festival of “Ahidous” was greatly supported by a political figure in the region considered one of the “men of the state,” who managed to make the festival a major national event attracting complex interest from all parties and even granted it the honor of royal high patronage.

With the changes in the political sites and colors in the region, the support that the event used to enjoy declined, and the festival lost its cultural and artistic resonance after the rug was pulled from under those who oversaw the golden period of the festival, who knew the conditions for development and improvement and understood the fine details that the Ministry of Culture, as the organizing body, could not master. This new context led to an event that could not surpass the performative and celebratory aspect of the “Ahidous” art.

While this performative aspect is important for entertainment and relieving visitors, shedding light on these complex expressions remains indispensable. “Ahidous” is not merely folklore for narrow tourism consumption but a deeply rooted ritual deserving anthropological treatment that reveals its shadow aspects. “Ahidous” poetry is rich with artistic and rhetorical imagery that can only be understood through scientific approaches by literary and critical scholars using established methodologies, with poems carrying encrypted messages and exceptional symbolism comprehended only by discourse analysts, linguists, historians, and sociologists.

Organizing a national festival for “Ahidous” in the heart of the Atlas requires awareness of the necessity and importance of scientific approaches to properly understand the “Ahidous” phenomenon. Hence, the absence of lectures and scientific seminars and the exclusion of specialists in rhetoric, anthropology, history, linguistics, and sociology from this event is a grave mistake that must be rectified.

In this context, coordination should extend between the Ministry of Youth, Culture, and Communication – Culture Sector, and the Thaimat Association for Atlas Arts (present but absent), to university institutions no more than about one hundred kilometers from Ain Louh, which are full of specialized professors who have studied and analyzed Amazigh poetry and “Ahidous” dance rituals.

The Ministry of Youth, Culture, and Communication – Culture Sector should also focus on framing and fairly treating poets and artists. If the last edition witnessed the participation of thirty-nine (39) groups representing various styles and expressions of this authentic heritage art, the ministry is required to hold an extensive meeting with these creators to listen to their grievances and help them prepare their files with maximum facilitation to enable all members of these groups to obtain an “artist card” and organize a study day or campaigns through which the ministry presents the benefits of this card.

On the other hand, the ministry and its departments should work to encourage heritage groups through excellence awards during the National Festival in Ain Louh and promote networking across provinces, prefectures, and regions of the kingdom as a methodology that would better frame these artists’ work through training sessions, experience exchange meetings, and coordination.

All that has been said remains just a drop in the ocean of concerns and sufferings of the “Ahidous” men and their lovers, and a fundamental introduction to responsibly valorizing the national cultural heritage that champions Moroccan specificity and distinction, as well as doing justice to those who adorn themselves to create entertainment, leaving their work and tasks to draw smiles on faces. “Ahidous” is not just poetry and dance but a cultural, civilizational, and artistic ritual extending for many centuries and known only to the soil of this homeland, and the responsible ministry and its departments must realize that and suffice.