Rachida Nafâa

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Rachida Nafaa is a professor of Geography at the Faculty of Letters, Mohammadia , where she served as a Dean for two mandates. She is a militant in the “Association Démocratique des Femmes Marocaines”(ADFM). Before she joined the university as a full-time professor, she had worked as a teacher in a secondary school while she was doing her Ph.D.Being the eldest in her family, Rachida has taken responsibility since her childhood. She always got good grades and was among the top ones in her class. Her father has been a big influence on her. He has always encouraged her to pursue her studies and keep it up. She is the first female doctorate holder in geography in Morocco. “Moroccan, fighter, and optimist”. She won one of the important battles of her life. She has contributed effectively to the change of the law related to the nationality of the children of mixed marriage. Her son was not allowed to have Moroccan nationality since his father is not Moroccan. As an activist and a member of the ADFM, she fought against this injustice. In 2007, a right bill allowing children of a Moroccan mother and a foreign father to have a Moroccan nationality was adopted by the government. According to her, this is one of her best achievements ever.
Rachida stated that she was influenced by her father, husband, and her professor Abdallah Laâouina. Her father has always encouraged her. Her husband has contributed to achieving success while her professor was her idol.
She has other challenges to overcome at work! The field she has chosen as a faculty member or as a dean is male dominated. Her appointment as a dean was rather unwelcome by her male colleagues. She has been supportive to women as she encourages them and provides help to realize their projects or boost their research laboratories. She considers communication, problem-solving techniques, information sharing, respect of the “institutions”, time management inter alias to be the key to the faculty’s success. Her experience in Indiana State University shaped her personality and provided her with the required skills of leadership. During her training, she decided to become a dean to contribute to the development of her country. She has made several recommendations that could contribute to the empowerment of women in Morocco, among which:
● Girls' schooling in rural areas/ communities,
● Help and support to female students aged between 28 -40 years old. These main recommendations could help them improve their studies, feel more confident and eventually boost their careers. This period of their life is crucial for their development and their success. Prof. Nafâa has particularly insisted on improving women’s self-confidence as a tool to enhance and to empower women in Morocco. Finally, she believes that women should be a power of suggestion and change for a better life.