Fair Trade Experiences
in Cambodia, Vietnam and Timor Leste
Cambodia
Responding to the Challenges of Fair trade
Presented by Sitann Nuth
Artisans’ Association of Cambodia (AAC)
The challenge of reviving the ancient tradition
of Cambodian arts and handicrafts opened the opportunity towards
aligning with the principles of Fair Trade. With support from the
international community, several Cambodian-run organizations were
established to promote the production of silk yarns, silk weaving,
wood carving and other traditional handicrafts.
There are currently over 50 producer groups in
Cambodia – from local NGOs to small, family-run businesses
– working in accordance with Fair Trade principles. These
groups pay special attention to the well-being of their workers,
often setting an example to other businesses around them. Through
the support given by Fair Trade infrastructure organizations, such
as the Artisans’ Association of Cambodia (AAC) and Tradecraft
UK, there has been an increasing number of locally-run businesses
that have injected a social dimension in their work and taking pride
in themselves as ethical producers of Cambodian products.
The Artisans’ Association of Cambodia (AAC)
The organization was established in 2001 as a fair
trade association, whose aim is to support the development of producer
groups across Cambodia, particularly those working with disadvantaged
people. As the first Cambodian organization to be registered with
IFAT, AAC has played an important role over the past few years in
promoting the principles of Fair Trade among artisans working in
a variety of production areas. AAC currently supports 34 member
organizations, providing them with training and direct assistance
in areas such as product design, marketing and communications, international
sales, organizational development and Fair Trade guidelines. By
increasing the capacity of these local organizations – a combination
of small NGOs and social businesses – AAC hopes to move each
group from small sales and dependence on foreign subsidies to large-scale
exports and independent status.
As part of its support to member organizations,
AAC also acts as a ‘commercial broker’ between international
buyers wishing to buy a range of products from local producer groups
and these groups themselves, which often lack the resources to effectively
co-ordinate large-scale exports to another country. AAC is also
in the process of working with a number of local and international
Fair Trade groups in developing an accreditation
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