He proved himself as a versatile performer over the following seasons, competing on various surfaces and distances. He was seventh in the long race at the 2002 IAAF World Cross Country Championships (helping Morocco to the team bronze) and narrowly missed out on a 10,000 m medal with a fourth-place finish at the 2002 African Championships in Athletics. His tenth and fifteenth position finishes in the short and long race of the 2003 IAAF World Cross Country Championships brought two further team bronze medals for Morocco. He also performed well on the track, coming ninth over 3000 metres at the 2003 IAAF World Indoor Championships and then tenth outdoors in the 5000 m at the 2003 World Championships in Athletics. That October he came twelfth at the 2003 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships, aiding his country to fourth in the team rankings.