International Women's Day 2020

This year, International Women’s Day on March 8th 2020 is focusing on creating a gender equal world where women’s achievements are recognised as part of ‘making an equal world an enabled world’

At Artisanne we’re 99% women so have we got it all wrong?  We don’t think so, but at the moment the fact is only women in Senegal weave as the men tend the fields.  We hope that in time there will be more of a balance.  However, on International Women’s Day we wanted to champion one of the remarkable weavers who has literally ‘made it’ - not only our baskets but in her wider role.

Fatou has 6 children, one of whom is blind.  As well as taking care of the house, the children, elderly relatives, cooking and weaving, she also manages an informal group of women who weave for her.  She briefs them, quality controls their work and manages the timings.  This enables her to earn more than she could purely weaving herself.  She juggles the work-load admirably and is always the first to finish her orders.

What we might consider being a ‘super mum’ Fatou seems to take in her stride and she relishes being surrounded by her children as I found her on a recent visit.  Believing in big families she also had some handy advice for me when I told her I had 3 children “You still only have 3 children, there must be something wrong, go to the doctor quickly to get help”  When I responded that I thought 3 was enough she was horrified and asked “why?”  

So, it seems every woman has their own perception of making it while we all have a contribution to make to enabling the world.