Guyana must match the efforts of other Caricom countries to support craft industry
Local craft producer says exports can enhance Guyana's image abroad
Stabroek News
November 3, 2006
Prospective Cricket World Cup souvenir manufacturer Irene Bacchus-Holder shows off her handiwork at this year's GUYEXPO.
A Linden-based craft producer who is seeking to have her products form part of the collection of Guyanese handicraft that will be designated official Cricket World Cup 2007 souvenirs is calling for more government support for the handicraft industry in Guyana which, she says, can deliver important returns for the country as a whole.
Irene Bacchus-Holder, whose Linden-based entity, Irene's Creative Craft was one of several handicraft enterprises appearing at the recently concluded GuyExpo is calling on government to match the efforts of other Caricom countries to support the indigenous craft industry particularly in its efforts to market its products overseas.
While acknowledging the efforts of the Guyana Office of Investment (GoInvest) to assist local craft producers seeking to participate in regional and international trade fairs and exhibitions Ms, Holder-Bacchus said that more needed to be done to help craft producers meet the cost of attending those events. She said that consideration needed to be given to the fact that most Guyanese craft producers operate at a subsistence or near subsistence level and that the costs associated with attending international events were, invariably, way beyond their reach.
Ms. Bacchus-Holder who returned to Guyana recently from an event in St. Lucia told Stabroek Business that the available evidence suggests that Guyana was behind several other Caricom countries in terms of official support for its local craft industry. She singled out Barbados where she said it was apparent that the local handicraft industry was receiving full support, including financial support from the government.
Ms. Bacchus-Holder said that during her recent visit to St. Lucia she was afforded the opportunity of assessing the state of preparedness of the craft sectors in the various other territories for next year's Cricket World Cup. She said that it was her view that Guyana may well be behind the rest of the region in terms of the preparedness of its craft industry for the event. She pointed out that in the case of Jamaica a catalogue of the craft items that will be sold under licence as official CWC souvenirs is already in circulation.
With the October 31 deadline for the submission of samples of local art and craft to be considered as official souvenirs for Cricket World Cup sent having expired Ms. Holder said that she was uncertain as to the number of local craft producers who had submitted samples. She said that while her own samples had already been submitted she was now contemplating the cost of producing products "in quantities" for sale during Cricket World Cup. She disclosed that while she had received a commitment from the Linden Economic Advancement Programme (LEAP) that it would fund the salary of a worker to assist with production for Cricket World Cup she, nonetheless, still has to bear the costs associated with production and with having her products marketed. According to Ms. Bacchus-Holder, Cricket World Cup 2007 provided "an ideal opportunity" for government and local lending institutions to extend support to the local art and craft community since, she said, the benefits that will derive from the sale of local souvenirs during Cricket World Cup will include the marketing of Guyana's image in several countries around the world.
The Linden-based craft producer who told Stabroek Business that her own commitment to establishing a viable enterprise within the industry had seen her acquire more than $5m in tools and equipment is calling for official support for the marketing of craft overseas since, she says, local craft producers lack the "know how" and the knowledge of international markets. She said that the relatively slow growth of the local tourism industry up until now meant that the major markets for local craft were outside of Guyana among the Guyanese diaspora and tourists interested in Guyanese art and craft. "It is at the international trade shows and exhibitions that we can really make an impact," Ms. Bacchus-Holder said.
Asked about her expectations for the local craft industry arising out of the recently concluded GuyExpo Ms. Bacchus-Holder said that her own involvement in GuyExpo was associated with her own commitment to joining other exhibitors in "putting Guyana on show." She said, however, that she had no real expectations that her own GuyExpo venture would be a huge commercial success.