Helping Vietnamese crafts find way to global markets
Deeply rooted in the culture of its people, crafts are a long-standing tradition of Viet Nam. Most commonly, these crafts are produced by families in rural areas. Many of them have traditionally been among the country’s poorest groups. Now, however, this trend is gradually beginning to shift as Vietnamese design catches the world’s attention.
In April, Vietnamese crafts producers, supported by the International Trade Centre (ITC) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), put their handicrafts on display at the LifeStyle Viet Nam trade fair in Ho Chi Min City. The fair, organized by the country’s handicraft exporters association (VIETCRAFT), helps local handicraft makers connect with new buyers and create new business relations.
The fair is becoming a key home décor event in Southeast Asia, and this year it attracted more than 1,700 visitors, including over 1,300 foreign buyers from Australia, China, Japan, Europe, and the United States. Next year the number is expected to double.
In order to enter the global interior design market, many producers in Viet Nam need to upgrade their designs, quality and finishing techniques, and be aware of current design and consumer trends. This is where UNIDO and four other UN agencies come in. They introduced a programme called “Green Production and Trade to Increase Income and Employment Opportunities for the Rural Poor” and provided a team of young international designers to help selected companies develop new ranges of sustainable products.
UNIDO and partners are supporting income and employment opportunities for growers and collectors of raw materials and producers of handicrafts. This will particularly benefit women and children, who are traditionally more active in crafts production, and also more likely to be exposed to its health risks. Within the Programme, UNIDO is responsible for the introduction of cleaner production and sustainable design concepts and practices, in rattan, silk, seagrass, hand made paper and lacquer ware sectors.
“Cleaner production improves the crafts techniques, resulting in reduced waste and emissions and conservation of energy, water and raw materials” said Rene Van Berkel, the UNIDO Project Manager and chief of the Cleaner and Sustainable Production Unit. “Design for Sustainability complements this with innovative product designs, that reduce environmental impacts along the entire life cycle of the craft item, while at the same time enhancing its value to the customer, through better functionality, incorporation of traditional designs or better aesthetics”. UNIDO works closely with its long term partner the Vietnam National Cleaner Production Centre and Hanoi University of Technology.
The cultivation and processing of natural raw materials and handicraft production constitute the most important sources of additional income for rural households. Several hundred crafts exporters with large producer networks throughout the country are providing employment for 1.35 million people in some 2,000 crafts villages.
“The new product collections designed with support from the programme are simple, easy to produce and interesting for many customers, including from Japan, Australia and Brazil,” said Dang Cong Thang, whose business, Halinh Rattan and Bamboo Company, is one of fifteen companies that receive design support.
“The joint UN programme has been providing very efficient support to our company, encouraging our company’s participation and increase the effectiveness of our company’s participation in the trade fair,” he added.
The joint programme is a collaboration between UNIDO, the Government of Viet Nam, the International Trade Centre (ITC), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Labour Organization (ILO), and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). The programme is financed by the Spanish MDG Achievement Fund.
June 2011
For more information about the programme, see www.greentrade.org.vn, or contact:
Rene Van Berkel
UNIDO Project Manager
E-mail
