Peru
This company trains local women in embroidery to help them improve their quality of life.
Originally, this was a small family business, with leather-working techniques taught and handed down from generation to generation, however what was lacking was the knowledge and means to market the products and to diversify the product range with techniques such as embroidery.
Peru Quechua Belts started with just 20 women, and now has become a successful export business, providing an income for approx. 400 women and growing. The company works with collectives of women from marginal urban areas, from low-income, at risk homes, and victims of domestic violence. In Ayacucho, 60% of women are victim to domestic physical violence. From their disadvantaged situation, these women display their creative abilities and skills through the production of their intricately embroidered handmade bags and belts.
This project plays a vital role in the lives of women in Ayacucho, Peru. By training artisans to produce quality handcrafts, the organisation offers the community a foothold in the global marketplace, helping to create greater income-generating opportunities for local women. In the process of competing for global market share, Peruvian women come together to discuss common problems and solutions, learn from one another, and celebrate milestones within the group.15 organisations like Peru Quechua Belts received training through the Belgian-Peruvian programme to fight domestic and sexual violence (PILVFS). The goal was to increase the revenue of the women by strengthening their technical and productive skills and to foster their business skills. Also, through self-help groups and coaching, the program’s aim was to attack domestic violence by the root and empower women to combat it.
Production Techniques
Acknowledging its responsibility to the environment, Peru Quechua Belts is working to rescue the process of natural tanning, returning to the use of natural products and materials during the tanning and dyeing processes.
This project has received funding from various domestic and international government agencies to provide training to women in disadvantaged communities.
(SQ)