For more information about ITC's Creative Industries related projects expand this section.
Developing and implementing projects
Through tailor-made technical assistance, ITC enables artists, artisans and musicians from developing countries and transition economies to meet international market requirements and thus enter the export value chain. The overall development objective of the projects and programmes is to reduce poverty, generate employment opportunities and income, as well as empower women to create a sustainable livelihood.
ITC also provides legal advice on how to draft contracts with buyers and/or agents relating to international and country-specific regulations to empower artisans and musicians to sell their products in a sustainable way and be able to make a living out of their creations. ITC collaborates in these aspects with the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) to explain decisive linkages between successful marketing and the appropriate use of Intellectual Properties by artisans, craft entrepreneurs, visual artists and musicians
ArtisanConnect
artisanconnect.net is a web portal dedicated to supporting trade in crafts from developing countries. The objective of the portal is to enable the craft sector to benefit from trade opportunities. It offers sources on markets, design, techniques and projects to artisans and keeps organizations up to date regarding trade fairs and other related events worldwide.
The portal hosts an extensive database of organizations, glossaries, and useful links. With its large database of organizations, it endeavours to create intra-industry linkages, especially between developed and developing countries. Artisanconnect allows users to highlight or share their expertise and expand their network. One can contribute content to the site, discuss and comment on a particular document, find new contacts and partners.
Mozambique Joint Programme on Creative Industries
The Joint Programme for Strengthening Cultural and Creative Industries and Inclusive Policies in Mozambique is a 3-year programme funded by the UNDP/Spain Millennium Development Goals Achievement Fund (MDG-F). It aims to strengthen the role of culture in the development process of Mozambique through economic development and through the cross-cutting role of culture in other areas of development. UNESCO is the lead agency together with the other participating agencies ITC, ILO, FAO, UNHCR, and UNFPA. The Programme is taking place in the provinces of Inhambane, Maputo and Nampula. For more information, please refer the project brief.
CARIFORUM creative industries promotion
The project’s objectives are to (1) build capacity among selected micro, medium, and small enterprises to respond to international market demands, particularly with regard to product design and development; (2) enhance the capacity of Caribbean Export; the organization of Eastern Caribbean States Export Development Unit (OECS EDU) and national craft support institutions to provide improved services to the CI sector and to (3) increase awareness of the CARIFORUM creative industries sector.
Enhancement of Arab capacity for trade (EnACT)
The project aims at reinforcing trade policy making function, trade promotion and enterprise competitiveness in five Arab countries: Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia. Ultimately, EnACT seeks to promote additional trade, both from the region outward and between selected countries. EnACT has a craft component and is built around four major output areas: (1) Trade Intelligence & Policy and Export Strategy; (2) TSI Strengthening for Export Competitiveness, (3) Market Development and Support for Enterprises; and (4) Gender and Youth Mainstreaming in Trade.
Cambodian sector-wide silk project
The project contributes to achieve the vision of the sector-wide silk sector strategy: to create a competitive and well-organized silk sector that can generate income and employment to reduce poverty for all stakeholders along the supply chain. Concretely, the project has the following objectives: (i) increasing supply of flexible sized silk cloth in Phnom Penh for large producers and exporters; (ii) improving quality management through training of weavers in 50 villages and (iii) enhancing marketing and promotion of Cambodian silk and silk products, including the development of a quality label.
Past Projects – some examples:
Support to trade promotion and export development (Government and Sector Association level):
- Cambodia: development of sector wide silk strategy
- Viet Nam: arts & crafts - creation of an operational trade support network at the national level between government, TSOs and exporting enterprises and an effective trade information capacity
- Union économique et monétaire ouest-africaine (UEMOA): Programming assistance to the Commission of the UEMOA, in support of the “Programme communautaire en matière d’artisanat”. Design and formulation of a regional project on "Export Development and Promotion of Artisanal Products"
Export-led Poverty Reduction Programme (Producer and Sector Association level):
Export development for craft enterprises:
- Sri Lanka: Development of private sector export capacity (gems and jewellery sector)
- Buthan: Private sector access to export markets in the context of a WTO compliant
- Tibet: Development of export market for Tibetan hand-knotted carpets
- SADC: Trade promotion and development of crafts and visual arts