Craft Link

Vietnam

Chan dung

Purpose

Craft Link is a Vietnamese not-for-profit, fair trade organisation whose mission statement is to help traditional craft producers to revive their culture and improve their livelihoods through handicraft production and marketing. Their aims and objectives are to:

help craft producers to improve their livelihoods through craft production and marketing
help to revive and promote traditional culture and skills
educate the public about handicraft producers and their products.

Producers

Craft Link works with 63 GROUPS all over Vietnam, of which:

45% are ethnic minorities. These are the inhabitants of tribal villages who face many disadvantages connected with their status as minority groups: they are poor, have a lower level of education than others, live in remote places, have no knowledge of, or access to the market, and include disabled ex-military personnel. These groups are organised on a co-operative model with elected leaders, who receive training from the development staff at Craft Link. They are about 80% women, which reflects the membership of the groups. The preservation of traditional skills and culture is of great importance to the 53 minority groups living in Vietnam
25% are disadvantaged groups. These include HIV/AIDS sufferers, people affected by Agent Orange, disabled people and street children
30% are traditional villages. These groups are chosen for business reasons, although they are still less advantaged, lack access to markets and meet fair trade criteria. Producers of lacquer ware, ceramics and paper belong in this category, and sales of their products support the development work of the organisation. They are usually family-owned small businesses with a sense of social responsibility. The number of groups has grown steadily from 10 in 1997 to 60 in 2009. The policy is to add 2 new groups each year.

Benefits

Benefits for producers include:

training in all aspects of production
a management fund, accompanied by training in money management
investment of trading profits in the development activities of the new handicraft projects and the provision of small funds for ethnic groups which need small capital for buying material or production tools
exposure to customers through bazaars and exhibitions.