Leading with innovation

Mrs. Nawal Chraibi and UM6P’s MAScIR are Shaping Morocco’s Technological Future

At UM6P, excellence is the motto. It can only be achieved with excellent minds filled with passion and commitment. These qualities are best represented in the career of Mrs. Nawal Chraibi, Head of the MAScIR foundation. In fact, with this mindset and the experience of 17 years, Mrs.Chraibi alongside her colleagues at MAScIR was able to overcome big challenges, namely the development of the first 100% Moroccan molecular diagnostic kit during the COVID pandemic.

This achievement was crucial in helping the country respond effectively to one of the biggest health crises of all time. Mrs. Chraibi remembers this as a pivotal experience in her career “that reinforced the definition of leadership, teamwork, and mobilization in times of crisis to serve one’s country”. At MAScIR, they didn’t only develop the kit but also moved to the production phase through the creation of a Startup called Moldiag to make the Moroccan population quickly benefit from the conceptualized diagnostic kit.

“When R&D and innovation move from the laboratory phase to the industrial one and serve the country in a time of crisis, the passion for scientific research and technological innovation takes a new turn in your career,” she explained.

Through such achievements, Mrs. Nawal Chraibi leads by example in R&D advancement. She drives others to understand the value of scientific research and innovation. “In theory, I was always taught that education, scientific research, and innovation are key factors for business competitiveness and, more broadly, levers for the development of nations. In practice, and over 17 years, I have observed how essential it is for awareness of the importance of R&D and technological innovation to become a reflex for every citizen and company in Morocco.” Such field-based actions are shown in MAScIR’s commitment to training the next generation of researchers and entrepreneurs through innovative guidance and tutoring methods. Indeed, the head of MAScIR ensured that “between 30 and 40 student researchers enrolled in various universities across the kingdom have been welcomed in MAScIR since its creation.

These students are supervised by engineers and/or researchers on industrial issues.” Moreover, the foundation is committed to bringing awareness to a younger niche on the importance of R&D and innovation by organizing initiatives such as the Kids Science Tour which consists of fun workshops to make science accessible for children and to capture their interest.