Craft Afrika
will on 2nd and 3rd October 2014 at the Jacaranda Hotel, Nairobi, convene
Afrika Handmade, a 2 day event that will focus on contemporary craft and design
produced in Kenya.
Registered
as a social enterprise in Kenya, Craft Afrika is involved in creating
opportunities that enable viable, dynamic craft and design enterprises. In this
regard, Craft Afrika was set up to address gaps in two specific areas:
knowledge sharing [including business and technical skills training as well as
mentorship] and market development [including market access].
The Afrika
Handmade symposium is a strategic activity under Craft Afrika’s market
development program, which seeks to create markets for locally produced
handmade goods. The objective of the symposium therefore, is to generate
visibility for the contemporary craft and design sector, thereby opening up new
market opportunities, especially at the domestic and regional level.
This is the
first edition of Afrika Handmade.
One of the
biggest challenges facing contemporary craft and design entrepreneurs is
accessing profitable and sustainable markets. This challenge is caused partly
by the fact that a large portion of the potential target market is unaware of
the existence of a more innovative genre of craft. Indeed, mention the word
‘craft’ and for most people, the association is with the ‘maasai’ market, often
characterised by cheap, mass produced souvenirs and curios.
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