Donna Karan promotes Haitian handicrafts value chain

A value-chain approach would work with local artisan organizations, helping their members hone their business skills and gain financial literacy. In parallel, partner organizations such as Urban Zen would assist craftsmen and women in product development and marketing, targeting new buyers. Complementary services would be developed such as access to financing and group purchases of raw materials. Most importantly, the project would have a long timeline to allow artisans to cement relationships with clients.

“All Haitian artisans are artists by their own right. What they need is some support to turn their art into a means of living. This is where we, as a development institution, clearly have a role to play,” said lead specialist Maria Teresa Villanueva, who coordinated the MIF’s projects in Haiti after the earthquake.

Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)