Sefrou, a small town 28 km south of Fès, has organised each June, since 1920, the oldest modern popular festival of Morocco — the Hab al-Molouk Cherry Moussem. The festival celebrates the cherry harvest, which has made the town's economic reputation since the 19th century, and unites several historic communities of the city — Arabs, Berbers, Moroccan Jews, Andalusians.
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to be replacedi. Origin
Sefrou was long a staging town on the caravan route towards the Tafilalet. Its human diversity — the Jewish mellah was one of the most active in the Moroccan north — made it a cultural crucible. The intensive cultivation of the Hab al-Molouk cherry ("cherry of kings", after a sweet, broad variety) begins in the 19th century. In 1920, under the Protectorate, the local notables organised the first edition of the Moussem as a civic festival.
ii. Programme
The festival, which lasts three days, comprises: a parade in traditional costume, the election of "Miss Cherries" (Lalla Hab al-Molouk), Andalusian-music and malhoun concerts, tbourida shows, a craft market, and a great public banquet. The current organisation rests on the Moussem Association, founded in 1986, with the support of the Ministry of Culture and the municipality.
iii. Local economy
The cherry remains a flagship product of Sefrou: about 1,200 hectares planted, 8,000 tonnes of annual production, more than 500 growers. The harvest seasonally mobilises several hundred women pickers. The main varieties — Hab al-Molouk, Burlat, Van — have, since 2022, a PGI file under examination at OMPIC.
iv. Heritage importance
The 2012 UNESCO inscription recognises the Moussem as an example of a modern civic festival — that is, born in the 20th century and not from an immemorial tradition — that has become authentically patrimonial through its continuity and rootedness. The Sefrou case is regularly cited in the scientific literature on contemporary heritage-making.