[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 121 (Monday, September 14, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1709]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

[[Page E1709]]



                       TRIBUTE TO AID TO ARTISANS

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. NANCY L. JOHNSON

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, September 14, 1998

  Mrs. JOHNSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, as Congress moves forward 
on consideration of the 1999 foreign operations budget, I would like to 
draw to your attention some of the highly successful international 
development programs of Aid to Artisans.
  Aid to Artisans, headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut, is a non-
profit organization that offers practical assistance to artisans world-
wide, working in partnerships to foster artistic traditions, cultural 
vitality, and community well-being. Through training and collaboration 
in product development, production and marketing, Aid to Artisans 
provides sustainable economic and social benefits for craftspeople in 
an environmentally sensitive and culturally respectful manner.
  Over three years, Aid to Artisans developed with Armenia partners the 
Armenia Craft Enterprise Center (ACEC) under a USAID funded 
humanitarian assistance program. ATA product designers developed a line 
of children's sweaters, taught knitters how to create high quality 
products, and presented them to the U.S. market. Several U.S. 
businesses now have a reliable supplier and have benefited from 
importing beautiful new sweaters. Over 600 Armenia women, who were 
living on a $5 per month pension, have home businesses and are earning 
$50 per month. ACEC is now a sustainable for-profit business and has 
attracted outside capital.
  In South America Aid to Artisans has had similar success. USAID's 
Microenterprise and Small Producer Support Project began investing in 
Peru's artisan sector in 1994. Aid to Artisans' role has been to train 
artisans in business skills, develop marketable products, and take the 
products to the New York International Gift Fair (NYIGF). At this trade 
show, ATA linked Peruvian businesses with American businesses. One New 
Hampshire company found a new supplier of hand-painted ceramics. 
Neiman-Marcus and Sundance catalogs ordered handmade pottery from 
Chulucanas, a northern Peruvian village where El Nifio flooded their 
homes and washed some roads away. In four years American businesses 
have been assisted by USAID's investment, and over 6,000 jobs have been 
created in Peru.
  In Africa Aid to Artisans has worked hard to promote product 
development. In a small village named Krofofrom, where there is no 
electricity, artisans have a long tradition of making brass objects for 
the tribal leaders of their country. Their technique of using lost-wax 
casting and recycled brass goes back to the past century. As local 
demand for their work decreased, unemployment rose, and the youth began 
to leave Krofofrom for the cities. Aid to Artisans, under USAID's Trade 
and Investment Program, was invited to work with the artisans. Quickly, 
new product lines of candleholders, napkin rings, art objects and 
decorative components for wood products were developed. The products 
have been introduced into the American market and U.S. importers have 
added them to their lines. Gumps catalog featured one of the votive 
candleholders. Today, there is full employment in Krofofrom, and 
entrepreneurs from the village are travelling on their own to 
international markets.
  The value of organizations like Aid to Artisans can not be emphasized 
enough. With the help of our federal funding, Aid to Artisans plays an 
integral role in creating income and ultimately a better quality of 
life for disadvantaged artisans in developing countries.

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