ZAACA Hosts Dialogue on Strategies and Policies to Grow the Craft and Applied Art Sector in Zimbabwe

ZAACA, being an association of Zimbabwean craft producers initially came together because of their common challenges such as marginalisation and poverty, as well as the need to promote their livelihood.

Over the years we have been frustrated by the informal recognition of the Zimbabwean crafts community as a specific category within the arts sector. In ZAACA’s view, various sectors use the work and stories of craftspeople to promote Zimbabwean culture and creativity, particularly the Tourism sector since they are embedded in the Tourism value chain where they share a portion of the “tourist dollar.” Despite this the crafts community perceives that they rarely benefit from the fruits of their work. To add onto the legacy of non-recognition, data on the arts and craft sector such as employment figures and related statistics on its socio-economic contribution to the country is fragmented, despite prior studies on the culture sector in general.

ZAACA commissioned Jimat Development Consultants in November 2015 to carry out a research to identify the major factors affecting their sub-sector. Their objective was to fill-in gaps of preceding studies which profiled the culture sector in Zimbabwe, by placing a specific focus on the status and contribution of the crafts and applied arts segment which they represent.

The association aims to use the findings to inform dialogue with their main stakeholders on strategies and policies to grow their sector.

In view of the above, ZAACA hosted a dialogue at the National Art Gallery where key stakeholders in the sector were invited. We presented findings of ZAACA’s research on the craft sector in Zimbabwe to stakeholders. Part of the day included:

• A sharing of testimonies on the experiences of craft producers at household level

• A comparison of other countries approaches to facilitating the growth of the crafts and applied arts sector and other best practices

• A description of the existing policy, legal and regulatory framework for crafts and applied art

• A dialogue between craft producers and their main stakeholders on priority action areas based the issues presented in the meeting.

It was a highly successful dialogue and we are determined to keep the momentum of this very important economic sector.