Empowerment through Environmental Governance: Navigating Challenges in Women's Argan Oil Cooperatives in Southwestern Morocco

The development of women’s argan oil cooperatives in southwestern Morocco presents a compelling case for discussing rural women's empowerment. Historically marginalized within patriarchal structures that restricted their roles to the domestic sphere and hindered their access to resources—such as argan trees, education, and paid work—up to the present day, Amazigh women have evolved into key contributors to a rural sector of local, national, and international significance, as well as actors with socio-political claims. However, this progress comes with its own set of challenges and risks. This presentation aims to explore the environmental governance mechanisms of this shift, highlighting the formation and achievements of these cooperatives, alongside the challenges, contradictions, and ambivalences inherent in the empowerment process as women navigate the multi-actor landscape of the argan oil boom. We draw on data collected during participatory action research conducted between September and October 2022 in the Souss Massa region, including 17 in-depth semi-structured interviews, focus groups with women from ten argan cooperatives, and one focus group with cooperative presidents. This is complemented by secondary data, and the analysis is framed through a feminist political ecology lens. Our analysis reveals that, through state-backed initiatives, international support, and the leadership of women, argan cooperatives have become more than just workplaces; they are vital spaces where women collectively assert their autonomy and cultivate a shared identity rooted in Amazigh pride and sisterhood. However, as the industry becomes increasingly dominated by foreign cosmetic companies and intermediaries, and as recurrent droughts pose further challenges, these cooperatives face growing difficulties from unfair competition and limited adaptive capacity. Since women’s empowerment is intrinsically tied to their control over the critical resource of argan fruit and oil, establishing a more equitable system of resource governance is essential.