The Traditional Artisans Inclusion (TA Inclusion)

The Development Problem

Women artisans supported by Engabu Za Tooro

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This innovation addresses market exclusion leading to poverty among traditional artisans in Africa. In a 2014 report of mapping creative and cultural industries, Uganda acknowledges “the bulk of artisan skills, youth talents and cultural assets are trapped in informal practice with limited capacities and market, contributing to mass poverty at grassroots” (MGLSD, 2014). Globally, 60% of the workforce is in informal sector and ILO estimates 300 million people to be home workers who are underserved as part of the informal economy. Despite its potential which now stands at US$ 500 annual revenue, growing at 20% per year to reach US$ 1 trillion by 2024 (PBP, 2021) and its absolute advantage of reaching the most vulnerable demographics like the sick, elderly, displaced and indigenous women, the handmade sector remains the most marginalized in capacity development investment in Africa.

The traditional artisans in Africa are not professionally defined, recognized nor targeted as a distinct and vulnerable production group within the contemporary creative sector. Their ancient craft designs have not been first consolidated as a distinct brand to create its own space in the market before introducing a fusion. This has distorted emergence of clear stages in crafting evolution with their advantage of expanded story diversity and improved market value.

The capacity development investment in the sector, apart from being too limited to reach traditional artisans in underserved contexts; its models do not take care of their unique limitations.

Traditional artisans who are predominantly women rely on traditional skills, hand tools, raw materials, informal distributions, are non literate, digitally excluded and operating from underserved contexts. They lost the traditional craft market as practical uses are replaced by products of modern industries and yet the emerging craft market require adaptive designs, modern business practices and technology enabled marketing. Despite their products losing market, they cling to crafting because it’s the only livelihood skill they have apart from peasantry agriculture where many of them no longer have the physical energy to engage. They form the poorest group in communities and surviving on less than 2 dollars a day.

The Solution

Crafting among the indigenous Basongora community

The Traditional Artisans Inclusion (TA Inclusion) is a new and scalable capacity development model designed to define, recognize and target traditional artisans as a distinct production group in creative manufacturing industry in Africa, consolidate their ancient designs as a distinct brand and address their unique limitations to advancing design innovations, viable craft enterprises and digital marketing.

The model has four key action areas;

Three modules capacity building customized to special needs of traditional artisans facilitated by toolkits which are adaptable to community programs. The first module consolidates design heritage and then unlocks the skills and sense of imagination which responds to the changing needs and lifestyles. This module evolves into community based incubation centers for design innovations. The second module introduces basic business practice and enterprise development while the third introduce technology enabled export marketing.
Development and periodic updating of craft digital and print catalogue which presents ancient juxtaposed with adaptive designs and ongoing provision of cataloguing skills to artisans.
Continuous development of digital marketing platform https://www.craftsfromafrica.net/ which is branded ancient juxtaposed with adaptive designs for enhanced story diversity and market value.
Establishment and ongoing management of ecosystem partnerships and collaborations for further support of the artisan enterprises.

The model has special features as follows;

Consolidating the originality and authenticity of ancient designs as a distinct brand
Use of community based TA Inclusion facilitators.
Pairing the elderly artisans with their youth successors for intergenerational sharing of skills and perspectives.
Promotion of a chain training system where one trained artisan trains another as the chain continues.

It brings new intervention principles in the sector which includes capacity development inclusion of traditional artisans defined as a distinct production group, dramatic sharing of artisan skills and intergenerational artisan communications. These are in addition to the common ones that include market access, women empowerment and heritage preservation.

Case studies have been identified around the world which prove that traditional artisanship, when given capacity development investment and appropriate models, is market and income viable. Nesta’s partnership with Gee’s Bend Quilting community in USA generated US$ 330,000 income for 31 practitioners in one year by applying capacity development to centuries long quilting tradition and hence turning it into a viable economic option (Nesta, 2021). MADE 51, a craft project of UNHCR has generally achieved the goals of refugee inclusion in the market economy (MADE 51, 2021) just as this model seeks effective inclusion of traditional artisans.

The preconditions

Customized capacity building of traditional artisans on craft design consolidation and innovations, business practices and craft enterprises management and technology enabled export marketing.
Publication and periodic updating of catalogue which consolidates ancient juxtaposed with adaptive designs and ongoing provision of cataloguing skills.
Technology support in form of development and ongoing management of digital marketing platform which brands ancient juxtaposed with adaptive designs.
Ecosystem collaborations and partnerships providing further support.

Outputs

– Traditional artisans who include elders paired with youth graduate from a process of capacity and linkage building activities.

– TA Inclusion facilitators performed roles of technical and literacy support to non-literate artisans.

– Traditional artisans performed chain training to scale transmission of skills.

Outcomes

After undergoing a complete process of capacity and linkage building activities, traditional artisans who include elderly and the youth are increasingly consolidating ancient designs as a distinct product and linking it to its relevant market. They are also making innovative designs, responding to emerging needs and connecting products to the global market through digitally enabled marketing. They are managing business relationships with value chain partners and building viable enterprises which are attracting further training, business financing, capital investments and marketing partnerships from ecosystem institutions at national and international levels. Ancient and adaptive designs have emerged as clearly separate product categories, creating diversity of themes and uses with associated increased market value.

Long term outcome

Traditional artisans in Africa who include the elderly and youth competitively accessing the global craft market and effectively integrated in design and creative manufacturing sector and creating jobs across the value chain.

Impact

Traditional artisans in Africa who include the elderly and youth and predominantly of female gender increasingly improve incomes, livelihood and welfare.

The key assumptions

The economic, political, social and health environment in the targeted countries remain conducive.
The most effective way of enabling poor traditional artisans to get income is to develop the market of their craft products.
Consolidating the originality of ancient designs of craft can increase market value and benefits to traditional artisans.
The employed unique strategies can enable traditional artisan uptake the capacity building.
Traditional artisans will access sufficient internet connectivity for their digital marketing of crafts.

The Theory of Change