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Craft villages struggling to exist
Environmental pollution and the absence of buyers are both huge obstacles for craft villages struggling to eke out a living.
For many years, a group of 30 Quang Nam women has been trying to restore the Co Tu brocade weaving craft village, which has existed for hundreds of years, but faces the risk of falling into oblivion.
With support from organizations and government authorities, the members have been trained to make brocade products and have begun reaching out to new markets, including trade fairs in Da Nang and Hoi An. According to Lan, Head of the Co Tu – Za Ra brocade weaving team, it is still very difficult to sell Co Tu brocade products.
The Cam Ne sedge mat craft village in Da Nang is confronting the same situation. Phan Tan, an artisan of the village, explained that in the past, there were hundreds of households making sedge mats, but now only some ten households continue to produce the mats. Even though the mats are rare, they are still very difficult to sell.
According to Luu Duy Dan, Deputy Chair and Secretary General of the Vietnam Craft Village Association, Vietnam now has some 2700 craft villages, including 500 traditional craft villages. Generally, craft villages remain weak in trade promotion and cannot connect with buyers.
Dr. Hoang Xuan Binh from the Vietnam Craft Village Association cited many challenges to the craft villages. Production establishments are mostly small, with poor management and planning, so the handicrafts cannot be considered commercial products.
According to Binh, in order to commercialize craft village products, it is necessary to specialize production and consumption. Crafts must have high quality and competitive prices.
Dan proposed that craft villages need to change their business strategies. They must cooperate with each other and support one another in production, popularization and commercialization.
Nguyen Van Tiep, a Quang Nam fine arts village artisan, argued that craft villages need state support to form detailed plans to improve consumption of craft products through tourism.
Binh agreed that support from the State is really necessary and added that now is the best time to think of developing industrial complexes that gather craft villages together.
vietnamnet, Tien phong
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