Postcard from Bishkek

One of the side effects of the postcards from Bishkek is that I sometimes get approached by a wide variety of people with diverse questions, which may be purely a request for information – (for example, for a school project – or maybe the contact details for the Minister of Tourism), or requests for help and advice, (like “How can I get a duplicate of a Birth Certificate for someone born in Frunze – as Bishkek was once called).  Some of them are quite specific and I can’t always provide the required answers, but we’ll always try and see if we can help.

A short while ago, I received one such request, from the Association of Iranian Women Entrepreneurs, (AIWE), based in Tehran, asking for the contact details for any Organizations, Associations, Collectives of Craftswomen … so I sent them the details of the major Associations, and thought that was the end of the story.

However … there was something about the request which struck me as particularly apposite.

Believe me or not, it reminded me of Switzerland … Let me explain that apparent non-sequiteur:

 

The Association was the “brainchild” of a number of entrepreneurs and business owners  who wanted to encourage entrepreneurship among the women of Iran by bringing together and drawing on the experience of others.  They hoped to provide a forum which would contribute to the development of individuals entrepreneurs, to encourage creativity and innovation, for liaison and discussion with government, NGOs, banks, universities and the like … and also ro encourage and help to bring on a new generation of entrepreneurs.

They registered the Association with the relevant Ministry in 2004 and began its activities in interest the following year.

Currently, they have over sixty members, which may not seem many, but they all seem to be in senior management positions, spread through a range of companies and industries.

One of their main activities is the organization of a annual seminar or conference, and for the next one in February next year, (on 18th and 19th February, 2014), which will be holding the tenth of the series in Tehran will be on the theme: Women’s entrepreneurship and business development in the field of handicrafts.

The aim is to identify business opportunities for women in handicrafts – identifying and “empowering” women in handicrafts, gather inform about various business patterns and models in the contemporary competitive “global market”, the use of computers and information technology, among other issues.

They want this to be an International event and hence the interest in contacting similar organizations in the region.  They are inviting entrepreneurs, (of course), academic institutions, (students and researchers), NGO’s, specialists and others in what is called here in Kyrgyzstan, Applied Arts, and what they call Synthetic Arts.  Apparently, participation (for “international participants”) is free of charge … they just have to get there and cover their living and other expenses.

The Association is anticipating anything up to about five hundred participants and are putting together a varied programme with activities, speakers, a chance to network and meet others in the field from Iran and abroad, visits to workshops in and around Tehran, some workshops or Master Classes,  and a chance to exhibit (and sell) examples of their products.

 

So, why did it make me think of Switzerland?

 

Well, the Swiss are one of Kyrgyzstan’s major trading partners … accounting for over 26% of all Kyrgyzstan’s exports … and, in particular, 97% of all the gold produced in the country …

As it happens, the Swiss have, also, always taken a keen interest in trying to Kyrgyzstan develop, funding projects in agriculture, education, food processing, crafts and tourism.  What seems like “a lifetime ago”, for example, the Kyrgyz Community Based Tourism Association, (KCBTA), was created to support the growth of tourism based on local communities and facilities.

Whereas KCBTA is specifically targeted towards tourism, the AIWE is a general association but like the Swiss, they have focused on Handicrafts as a suitable vehicle for women entrepreneurs.

Actually, I don’t think that the Swiss originally intended to get in involved in Tourism at all.  The Association sprang out of another, entirely different  project which sought to help alleviate poverty in the rural regions of the country by finding alternative, additional, sources of income.  It centered on trying to create and foster development opportunities for women … and an obvious place to start was with the sort of activity and skills that they already possessed and used in their everyday lives … that is, handicrafts.

Working with the craftswomen on creating designs and products of a quality that could find a place on the global market, they perceived the obvious potential of tourists as perspective customers. From their analysis, they also branched out into other aspects of tourism, most notably providing bed and breakfast accommodation in either homestays in villages, (such as Kochkor or Arslan Bob), or in yurts located in the mountain jailoo, (summer pastures – for example in Son Kul or Tash Rabat).

The model proved to be extremely successful, and I think that KCBTA is one of the shining examples of a successful project implemented by the Donor Community.  It has blossomed and grown, expanding throughout the country and has been used as a model for similar schemes in other Central Asian countries – albeit with varying degrees of success for one reason or another.

Perhaps it would also be of interest to the Iranians.

 

As it happens, there is another Association based here in Kyrgyzstan which is probably more relevant – the Central Asian Craft Support Association, (CACSA).  This was also set up with the help of a Donor organization in its early days, in their particular case the Talent Support Fund from the United States of America.

They serve as a Association of Craftsmen and women, individuals and organizations, (commercial companies, co-operatives and the like), from all over the region.

All three organizations seem to believe in the importance of training – both in the specific subject area in which they work, but also in management and business techniques, marketing and in the value of peer group support.  All three also seem committed to the idea of encouraging the further development of new entrepreneurs and creating a sustainable system for further development and growth.

 

I wish them every success with the conference and if I hear any more about, I’ll be sure to post it, (for example,  in the comments below).

 

Tags: For_the_Record, Organizations