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| Mali
It's mid-January, and I'm in the midst of planning my first trip to Mali. I invite you to return to this web page in early April, when we'll have photos of my trip and more first-hand information about Mali and textile production from West Africa.
For now, a little information from Wikipedia about the country, some photos sent to me from Cooperative Djiguiyaso, and the little I've learned about this interesting business:
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An
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Mali is a land-locked nation in West Africa, located southwest of Algeria.
- At 1,240,000 square kilometers (478,767 sq mi), Mali is the world's 24th-largest country, and is comparable in size to South Africa or Angola;
- Mali is one of the poorest countries in the world. The average worker's annual salary is approximately US $1,5000;
- Mali's key industry is agriculture. Cotton is the country's largest crop export, and is exported west throughout Senegal and the Ivory Coast;
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Landscape in Hombori, Mali.
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- In July 2009, Mali's population was an estimated 13 million, with an annual growth rate of 2.7%. The populatin is predominantly rural (68% in 2002), and 5-10% of Malians are nomadic;
- An estimated 90% of Malians are Muslim (mostly Sunni), approximately 5% are Christian (about two-thirds Roman Catholic and one-third Protestant) and the remaining 5% adhere to indigenous or traditional animist beliefs;
- An estimated 1.9% of the the adult and child population was afflicted with HIV/AIDS as of 2001, among the lowest rates in Sub-Saharan Africa. Public Health folks speculate that this mabe because of the high percentage of Muslims.
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The oldest mud mosque in the world is located in Djenné, Mali. |
In Djenné, a town outside of Bamako (Mali's capital), you can visit the oldest mud mosque in the world. This Mosque is completely constructed from mud: bricks, mortar, and plaster. This kind of mud structure can last for centuries if regularly maintained. Once a year, the entire community of Djenné comes together for a festival to make repairs to the Mosque. The festival includes music and food, but the main purpose of it is to repair any cracks or eroded areas of the structure. Huge pits of mud plaster are make in preparation, and the festival kicks off with a race to see who can be the first to bring the plaster to the Mosque.
The site has been the location of a mosque since 1240, but the current structure was completed around 1907.
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| Creative Women in Mali |
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Creative Women has just begun to work with Cooperative Djiguiyaso, a business set up by volunteer women with business know-how, as well as expertise in crochet, embroidery, and sewing. Their business plan targets women's poverty in one particular community. Since 2004, they have helped the women there transition into the workplace, started a workshop in |
| Some of the women of Cooperative Djiguiyaso. |
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crochet techniques, trained 20 young women a year in manual techniques, and created a high-quality line of home accessories and women's clothing from locally sourced 100% organic cotton.
Creative Women is pleased to introduce their elegant and refined crocheted pillows, and a crocheted shawl ant the NYIGF in January 2010. These wonderful new products are hand-made from organic cotton and are the perfect examples of going back to the roots... using traditional skills to create contemporary products.
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A close-up look at the intricate crochet that makes our Nest pillows so special. |
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This rosette is Cooperative Djiguiyaso's sgnature, and appears on the back of all their pillows. |
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" It's not just a matter of how we succeed here. It's about, 'How have I helped them to succeed?'
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Ellen Dorsch
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