Ethnic minorities and crafts project

Ethnic minorities and crafts project (Vietnam) - ongoing since the end of 2008

Ethnic minorities may be empowered by supporting and encouraging their traditional know-how. BATIK International has, together with its partners, targeted women from the Vietamese Mông minority who live in the mountainous province of Hà Giang and who are particularly vulnerable due to the extreme poverty.

These women are skilled in a complex and unique hemp weaving technique. This natural fibre was originally used by women to produce clothing embellishing them with motifs representing symbols closely linked with their ancestral culture.

To achieve a better understanding of these symbols BATIK International has, together with the Handicraft Research and Promotion Center (HRPC) developed a brochure explaining the meaning and history of this "Mông language".

However, this traditional skill is coming under threat, with the increasing imports of modern clothes coming from China. Supporting hemp weaving could therefore help create a new industry and generate a much needed additional income. With this end in mind, BATIK International launched the Ethnic Minorities and Crafts Project in December 2008 to preserve traditional techniques and help reduce poverty. The objective is to support the initiatives of women from the villages of Can Ty and Lung Tam by giving them training to enable them to develop traditional income-generating activities as part of a socially responsible value chain.

Several types of training are delivered:

Technical guidance allowing Mông women to produce quality finished products while respecting their traditional skills. Also and giving assistance in finding local and foreign market niches. Particularly this support is given by BATIK International, together with its Steering Committee, through the establishement of partnerships with companies working within an ethical framework.
Management and marketing trainig in order to reinforce Mông women’s independence and their capacity to manage their traditional activities in the long term.

In the pilot phase of the project, running from December 2008 to December 2009, 20 women from both villages benefitted from training courses lead by HRPC and Hadeva - the project’s Vietnamese partners - together with local partner companies and BATIK International. The second phase will be carried out during 2010 involving other Mông women in similar training courses.

In this same framework, in December 2010 get-togethers between Mông and French craftswomen from Seine-Saint-Denise district, will take place for the very first time within the framework of a partnership with the Seine-Saint-Denise Council. Two Mông craftswomen will be able to share their know-how and enrich their own experience in embroideries thanks to the workshops organized by the associations Franciade and Artefact93.

Furthermore, a photo exposition on the hemp manufacturing process will take place and will circulate around several Seine-Saint-Denis institutions during the International Solidarity Week in November 2010.

The project is endorsed by the Cooperation and Cultural Service from the French Embassy in Vietnam as well as by the French Committee for International Solidarity and Easia Travel. During 2010 the project has received as well support from the Ile de France Region and the Seine-Saint-Denis Council through the Via le Monde organization.