Jalq'a Women Weavers Organize

In several villages in the Bolivian Andes inhabited by the Jalq'a and Tarabuco peoples, the ILO, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Antropólogos del Sur Andino collaborated, between 1988 and 1993, to improve household incomes. The beneficiary group of the project was women weavers who produce the traditional garment, axsu. Famous in the past for their quality and unique motif, this textile has began to disappear. The increasingly deficient agriculture was pushing men out of the villages to find seasonal work and young women into domestic service. The project, wanting most of the decision-­making to come from the community, helped set up communal production units each operating under the supervision of a directorate elected by the village general assembly. The directorate was responsible for allocation and inventory of materials, quality control, contact with project experts and organization of the construction of necessary buildings. Before the project began, average annual income was about 100 bolivianos (Bs). Now, a skilful Jalq'a weaver can earn the same amount on an axsu in six months of work. Much of this money is invested in agriculture, education and health. Women participate in the directories of their production units and make a financial contribution to the community, with the result that their status and geographical mobility have improved.

Source: ILO: Building on culture to face changing realities. The Jalq'ac and Tarabucos story (Geneva, 1994).

Reader’s Kit on Gender, Poverty and Employment, MODULE 2.Organizational and Negotiating Power: Ability to Initiate Change