Fair Trade Made Black & Natural Maila Milulu Reed Baskets from Tanzania, Africa

Vikapu Bomba embodies the vision of Catherine Shembilu to create sustainable income for talented rural Tanzanian women. For many women living in the lush southern highlands, life centers around subsistence farming, cooking, cleaning, and caring for children. Women can weave baskets between their other duties, working daily to earn money to pay school fees, buy food, procure farming supplies and contribute to savings. When a woman has money of her own to use or share, she has greater influence over her life and future.

Milulu grass reeds can be harvested carefully from the marsh without removing the entire plant, dried in the sun, dyed with natural dyes, and split for weaving. The closeness to the earth of both maker and product gives these beautifully crafted baskets widespread appeal.

Sold singly, available in three sizes. Because these baskets are woven by hand, each will vary slightly.

Approx Dimensions:
Small: 10"D x 10"H
Medium: 12"D x 12"H
Large: 13"D x 13"H

Crafted from: Milulu grass, natural dye
Made in: Tanzania

We believe that hardworking African artisans, producers, and export agents hold the key to their own personal success and that the path to success requires a steady, committed pace. We can extend each artisan's channel of trades from local markets to the global marketplace, all the while providing them with options to work from the comfort of their own homes and communities. Secure in the knowledge that the fair payment they receive will not be reduced by traveling expenses, childcare costs, and haggled prices, most artisans in the network promote their family's future by using earnings to put food on the table and pay educational expenses for their children.

Fair Trade Federation, a group of like-minded companies and organizations that adhere to:
providing fair payment to workers in developing nations
educating artisans and workers to increase their potential for advancement
ensuring the rights of children
developing products and processes that protect and conserve the natural environment
promoting fair trade as the standard in commercial exchanges