Pakistani Handicrafts

The nature of the handicrafts is interwoven with the inherent culture of the people of Pakistan. The artisans of Pakistan are hard-working, dedicated to their passion and creative which have been passed down from one generation to the next. Unfortunately, these artisans have had to struggle to allow their crafts to survive in an industry going directionless due to the negligence of supervision and the authority. Besides that there is a long history of abusive techniques employed by the “middleman” who gives only meager return to the artisans for their hard work.

Recently, the central Government of Pakistan has recognized the potential of this sector and has encouraged a public-private partnership with the Ministry of Industries and Production knowing that if nothing has been done then the industry will die just like the film industry. Provincial and local governments are usually responsible for the development and preservation of art and culture. Unfortunately the efficiency and interest of Pakistani local government towards Arts and Culture is quite evident from the fate of film industry. It is surprising that Pakistan does not produce any motion pictures anymore. Whereas the neighboring India has one of the biggest film industry based in Mumbai by the name of Bollywood.

The endeavors of the Pakistani government led to the formation of a non-profit organization, Aik Hunar Aik Nagar (AHAN) (loosely translated to mean ‘one village one product’ ) to facilitate rural small enterprises and help in the formation of artisan-producer cooperatives which will help in product development, quality control, marketing and technology up-grades. The mission of this venture is to create an enabling environment for poor handicrafts producer groups, particularly women and landless peasants, in order to better equip them to produce and market their handicrafts.

ADORN (Artisans Development Online Retail Network), a social enterprise, aims to promote the handicrafts industry and is thus working with AHAN to help introduce its products to a larger market through the internet to offer employment and growth opportunities for the artisans. But, instead of working in a top-down approach, Adorn fosters personal relationships, offers advice on product development and tries to work from the perspective of the artisan.

It is still not certain that how effective these two organizations are so far? Or that was another way of funds embezzlement by the corrupt Pakistani officials? Time will tell but having these two NGOs can at least give us some hope for better future for the Pakistani crafts.