The creation of the academy was one of the major actions taken by King Mohamed VI showing his interest in Moroccan heritage and traditional arts.

[2] The academy's faculty, including master artisans and a highly qualified instructors, come from all over Morocco and the world.

Studies in the academy span for 3 years except for calligraphy (2 years), There are 5 main departments that offer 10 different crafts: carved wood, ironwork, jewelry, painted wood, carved plaster, leather work, stonemasonry, zellige, traditional weaving, and calligraphy.

Every year the academy hosts a conference on a particular craft like woodworking, building restoration, or Islamic geometry.

In 2019, The Academy partnered with the Farid Belkahia foundation to organize the first Traditional Arts award,[3] to encourage young talent that showed innovation in their work, added a touch modernity, or made an effort to preserve the traditional craft.