Es-Semara — The 3rd Sakia El Hamra International Camel Race Festival kicked off on Sunday in the southern city of Es-Semara, under the theme "Cultural heritage in the service of development", with the participation of several Arab countries.
Organized by the Moroccan Camel Racing Federation, this sporting and cultural event, which is part of the festivities marking the celebration of the 48th anniversary of the Green March, aims to promote the practice and sustainability of traditional sports in general an
camel racing in particular, as an authentic and ancestral Arab sport which is transmitted from generation to generation.
Named "Edition Late Moulay Khayri Alouali", this event organized in partnership with the Es-Semara Camel Racing Club and in coordination with Morocco's General Federation of Camel Racing, aims to preserve this valuable intangible heritage and to integrate it into the momentum of socio-economic development.
This two-day event, which takes place on the camel track in the municipality of Sidi Ahmed Laaroussi, brings together several Arab countries, namely Qatar, Kuwait, Palestine, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Oman, Jordan, Mauritania, Libya and Tunisia, in addition to teams from the southern provinces.
On this occasion, the Festival's director, Mohamed Lamine Ragheb, said the organization of this event aims to raise awareness of local cultural specificities, contribute to the promotion of the tourism sector in the province and the region and to ensure the professionalization of camel racing and the consolidation of young people's attachment to their roots.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
It is also meant to promote the role of the camel race in the Sahrawi heritage and highlight the potential of the Laâyoune-Sakia El Hamra region in terms of camel breeding, underlined Ragab, who is also president of the Moroccan Camel Racing Federation.
Considered to be an authentic Arab sport, camel races have been the subject of particular interest among researchers, due to their role in preserving the heritage of the inhabitants of the southern provinces and safeguarding their customs face to urbanization.
The opening ceremony was attended by President of the Arab Camel Racing Federation, Abdellah Al-Kouari, Secretary General of the Federation, Hazam Nasser, vice-President of the Omani Camel Racing Federation, Muslim El Ktiri, President of the Mauritanian Federation, Yaslam Al-Moustapha, head of the Saudi delegation, Fahd Ben Kayed, and the vice-President of Qatari Camel Racing, Abou Hamad Ibrahim, as well as a host of personalities interested in camel breeding.
