Bombolulu Workshops & Cultural Centre, Kenya |  |
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Bombolulu Workshops & Cultural Centre is a project of The Association for the Physically Disabled of Kenya (APDK). In this site you will be able to see some of our product designs as well as some other items sourced from local designers who supply Bombolulu. We manufacture and export handcrafts to over 20 countries worldwide from our four sheltered workshops. Aside from serving export markets, we also supply Kenyan customers and welcome many African and international visitors to take a tour of our workshops and authentic cultural centre. Visitors learn about Fair Trade, handicraft design and manufacture, and can enjoy traditional cultural dances, explore authentic tribal homesteads, and dine on typical Swahili food in our relaxing open-air Ziga restaurant. Please explore the site to learn about our products and even plan to visit us! You're most welcome. Mission : History: We run the following workshops:
We also have a Cultural Centre and Ziga Restaurant. The Jewellery Workshop was the first workshop to be set up and today it has a production capacity of over 150,000 units of items per annum. The production mode encompasses the use of hand tools. Every month over 500 different designs are made of components such as bone products, soapstone, brass, seeds, copper, wood, semi precious stones and recycled materials among others. The recycled products made from soda cans and bottle tops serves as a clear evidence of the project's great concern for the environment with the end products being brooches, Christmas decorations, bracelets, necklaces and carvings. Jewellery has been the mainstay of the business, but new techniques have been introduced and machinery in all workshops to ensure there continues to be interesting designs and export quality items. Many years of successful exporting have established the workshops as a reliable supplier and the project is a member of the International Fair Trade Association (IFAT). Tailoring workshop was set up in 1987. It depicts a range of textile products - Screen printed fashion wear, table clothes, napkins, table mats, wall hanging based on traditional motifs. The workshop has also revealed the ability to marry the ethnic designs with the fashion trends of this country. Other productions are like embroidery and appliqué. The workshop has a production capacity of 24, 000 unit items per annum. Woodcarving started in 1989 and produces a variety of decorative and utilitarian carvings. The products range from animal figures, masks, salad spoons, belt, buckles, wooden buttons, Nativity Sets etc. This workshop has a production capacity of 40,000 units per year and boasts of a skill second to none in flexible animals-snakes, fish and crocodiles ideal for toys and decorations. The use of good woods such as neem, mango, coconut prosopis juliflora, and casuarina are now used for over 50% of the carvings produced. The Leather Workshop was started in 1990, and has a workforce of 8 artisans with a production capacity of 7,000 units per year. The collection includes belts, sandals, handbags, brief cases, table mats, backpacks, canvas bags among others. The workshop uses genuine leather obtained from local tanneries, which mainly uses hides from cattle and goats. The cultural centre and Ziga restaurant were added in 1994. They were constructed in order to increase the variety of things to see for visitors to the centre. The cultural centre comprises of 8 traditional homesteads found in different parts of Kenya. Tribes represented include Bukusu, Maasai, Giriama, Orma, Mijikenda and Luo. A traditional Swahili home and various activities are also available for guests to participate in. At the height of its growth, the workshops employed over 260 salaried artisans, but in the 1990s a combination of natural and man made disasters severely affected the viability of the project, and the workforce had to be reduced to its current level of 150 artisans. Election clashes, El Nino floods and both embassy and hotel bombings by terrorists affected the numbers of tourists visiting Kenya, and interrupted Bombolulu?s operations severely. Operations were maintained during the toughest times with the support of loyal customers and generous donors. The growth of the international Fair Trade movement has helped Bombolulu to expand its exports, but the number of tourist visitors to the project is still lower than usual due to travel advisories against Kenya. Those artisans who left regular employment were offered early retirement packages or provided with enough financial assistance to start their own businesses. Many are now still in contact with Bombolulu and are successfully operating smaller businesses. Employee benefits: Fair Trade : Over one billion people are living in poverty today. And the gap between rich and poor is getting wider. The global trading system lies at the heart of this inequality. But every day, Fair Trade companies provide living proof that if the rules are fair, trade can enrich both producers and consumers on opposite sides of the world. Trade should be the door through which to escape from poverty, not the one to lock people in. Some fair trade principles:
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