The main incentive for the existence of what was called "atypical trade" between the borders of Ceuta and Melilla with the neighbouring cities of Morocco was:
that there is no commercial customs between these borders as Morocco refuses to recognise Spain's sovereignty over the territories of Ceuta and Melilla
the fact that there are no large spanish supermarket chains such as Mercadona or El Corte Inglés in Morocco, although there is a demand for their products among the Moroccan population.
the shortage of basic products in Morocco, due to import bans imposed by the King of Morocco.
Atypical trade is an economic advantage because:
iit generates employment among the impoverished population of northern Morocco and adds important economic activity to a territory with few resources like Ceuta and Melilla.
exports to Ceuta and their subsequent passage to Morocco reduce the costs that would be incurred, for example, between the ports of Algeciras (Spain) and Tangier-Med (Morocco), due to Ceuta's tax reduction in relation to mainland cities.
both are correct
The carrier women crossed the goods on the circuit between Morocco-Spain-Morocco, through the borders of Ceuta and Melilla, between 5 am and 12 pm carrying bundles weighing between 50 and 90 kilos on their backs. This activity was considered by the border police network - both the Spanish Civil Guard, the Spanish National Police and the Moroccan Gendarmerie - as a:
necessary commercial transaction since there is no boat transport.
as an activity that did not imply a commercial transaction since these bundles, as long as they were carried on the back, were considered as hand luggage under Moroccan law.
normal activity rooted in Moroccan peasant women, who were accustomed to carrying their children on their backs, even into their teenage years.
Cross-border women -domestic workers, sex workers and carrier women- share similarities such as the fact of going to work in Ceuta, but there are different status levels between them:
.carrier women are equated with sex workers in Moroccan society, as they work in public spaces and in direct contact with men, while domestic workers have an average degree of social prestige in the north of Morocco.
among cross-border women workers, carrier women have the highest social prestige in Morocco because they do not depend on the figure of a man to support them and their families, as they work on their own.
domestic workers have a low prestige in northern Moroccan society as they lose their status as good Muslims when they are in contact with Christian families.
During the closure of the border crossings between Spain and Morocco for COVID-19, carrier women:
were able to find other, better qualified jobs in the northern regions of Morocco.
received a financial grant from the Moroccan government to alleviate their economic situation after the loss of their source of income, specially those with more than three dependent children.
have lost their jobs and have limited alternatives for subsistence. The majority are women who have dependent children, and do not have a male breadwinner in their households. Carrying was their last option or the only job that allowed them to reconcile their work with care work at home.