Technical and sales training for 2000 traditional craftsmen
Dastkar (“artisan” in Hindi) is an Indian NGO established in 1981 with the aim of bringing to life and restoring traditional Indian craftsmanship. As an official government partner, Dastkar supports artisans (over 14 millions in India) in training and searching for commercial outlets
With the advent of industrial products in India, traditional Indian artisans are increasingly excluded from the economic backdrop of the country. To enable them to find a place in the economy and society, the Dastkar NGO wishes firstly to help them adapt their products to domestic and international demand and then to train them in marketing techniques. Artisans are selected on the basis of their artistic potential and motivation.
The Accor corporate Foundation supports the project brought by Ashwin Shirali, HRD Accor India, to enable 14 communities of traditional underprivileged artisans to be able to ‘live’ from their traditional expertise : wood-working in Rajasthan, hand weaving in Bihar, silk painting in Chhattisgarh, etc.
The project is implemented over three years and includes three types of action:
- Targeted and tailored training in each province (one-week module) to help artisans develop new models of products with modern and attractive designs,
- Workshops for training in sales and marketing in Delhi (one-week module) to help artisans in their offering (price, packaging, distribution, etc.),
- A market study identifying new opportunities, monitoring test exhibitions in Delhi and Bombay (targeted know-how is increasing rare in India, such as creating leather puppets in Andhra Pradesh).
This project is within the scope of “Local Know-How”
Support from Accor Foundation : 50 000 € over 3 years
