African Continental Crafts

Who We Are

African Continental Crafts (ACCL) is a for-profit social enterprise, founded on December 16, 2021, and incorporated in Uganda under Registration No. 80020003417576 and Tax Identification No. 102030690. Our operations aim to uplift traditional artisans across Africa by integrating their craft into the global creative industry and market.

The Vision statement

Equitable livelihood, welfare and resilience of traditional artisans in Africa within developed traditional heritage, ancient skills and creativity, integrated in an inclusive global creative industry and market.

The Mission statement

Employing innovative tools and strategies to reclaim the forgotten and bypassed traditional artisans in Africa into capacity development for market access and industry inclusion.

The Goal

Improving incomes, livelihood and resilience of market and industry excluded and bypassed traditional artisans in Africa, reclaiming and adapting them to the mainstream creative manufacturing sector and global market through innovative mobilization strategies, training tools and marketing strategies.

The Value proposition

This enterprise implements Traditional Artisan Inclusion innovation which addresses market and industry exclusion leading to extreme poverty among traditional artisans as a result of their unique technical limitations to participate in available capacity development models and market. It employs innovative tools and strategies to mitigate the technical limitations and reclaim traditional artisan to capacity development initiatives to consolidate their ancient designs as distinct product line, create adaptive styles and adopt business practices and digital marketing for competitive access to market and adapting to the mainstream creative manufacturing sector.

Our Approach

Innovation

We piloted the Traditional Artisan Inclusion Model, scalable across Africa, to transform traditional artisans into active participants in the global market. This hybrid model empowers underserved groups such as the elderly, persons with disabilities, refugees, and stateless populations, utilizing artisanal skills as a springboard for grassroots innovation.

Business Cycle and Core Processes

Baseline/Product and Market Research
Artisan Mobilization and Capacity Building Activities
Production, Collection, and Display Activities
Marketing and Trade Activities

Our Reach

Current Co-Implementation Partners in Uganda: ACCL collaborates with nonprofits and grassroots organizations such as Engabu Za Tooro, Koogere Foundation, YAWE Uganda, and several others to extend its reach and impact.
Grassroots Partner Groups in Uganda: We work with over 18 artisan groups and organizations across Uganda to empower individual artisans and enhance their livelihoods.
International Marketing Partners: Our international partner, Crafts of Africa, facilitates wholesale buying and international marketing.

Achievements and Support

We have garnered significant recognition and support through partnerships with globally renowned organizations and programs:

SOCAP Global Stage: Presented the model before impact investors.
Vital Voices Global Partnership (VV Grow Fellowship): Business and enterprise development training.
Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Program: Connections to investors and enterprise growth.
UNESCO ICH Accreditation: Scaling the model with public institutions.
Catalyst Market: Online marketing and trade support platform.

Future Plans

Currently piloting in Uganda, Congo Brazzaville, and Tanzania, ACCL plans to scale its efforts to other African countries, aiming to reach 3 million people along the artisanal value chain within five years.

Funding Needs

To achieve our ambitious goals, we require US$ 205,015 to implement pilot programs in each of the three targeted countries over a 36-month period.