Morocco celebrates 30 years of international storytelling festival

The 23rd edition of Morocco's International Storytelling Festival in Rabat brought together hundreds of storytellers and artists from around the world.

The festival explores the power and endurance of oral storytelling, centering tales that dive into the concept of the homeland.

Abdellah Mohammed Bilal, a storyteller from Mauritania, used the platform to tell stories that explain the sacrifices that go into building "a safe country with security, stability and decent living conditions."

This year the festival revisited Aicha Kandicha, a figure from folklore depicted as a supernatural being in Moroccan oral history.

"In its original form and in popular tradition, storytelling relies on the imagination," says Fatima Bassour, a storyteller from Casablanca. "I used my imagination to tell the story behind this year's festival theme, Aicha Kandicha. She was not a genie, but a free Moroccan woman who defended her homeland, both openly and in secret."

Over the course of eight days, performers from 40 countries came together for storytelling evenings, roundtable discussions and masterclasses at venues across Rabat.

Hayat Abdelkhaleq is a storyteller from Tunisia:

"I use storytelling in education because I am a teacher. A story can change people's lives, their emotions and their behavior. We tell a story, and people take it as a lesson. They reflect on its message, think about how they can change, and we can see that change in their eyes as they begin to reflect on themselves."

Another Tunisian storyteller, Mountassir Lamiri, says stories can be used to create bonds, transmit values and bring cultures closer together:

"Stories resemble one another and often intersect. There is a cultural bridge that connects civilizations and countries. As a new generation of young storytellers, we are committed to preserving that bridge and developing storytelling so that they reach the whole world."

This year's festival celebrated 30 years since its debut in 1996. As well as storytelling and entertainment, the program included workshops on preserving and documenting oral history.