From Nomads to Artisans

Sabala, a voluntary organisation set up in 1986, works with Lambanis in Bijapur and has succeeded in developing a sustainable livelihood model for around 350 ultra-poor households by utilizing their traditional skills while developing products for modern markets. Sabala worked with a value chain approach wherein it looked at each component of the supply chain and developed standardized production processes to ensure timeliness and high quality. Sabala set up a ‘linked enterprise’ – Crafts Development Center (CDC) – to facilitate interaction of communities with market, both domestic and export, and is now selling its products under the brand name of ‘Nomads’. This has had a significant impact at the community level wherein each woman earns upto Rs. 2000 per month. The initiative has led to revival of a traditional craft, reduction of migration and the settlement of the nomadic tribe in a respectable and dignified manner. Currently, the craft based Livelihood Initiative is a full-fledged business enterprise which has managed to sustain in the market for more than twenty years without any conventional funding support. Lambani tribe, who belong to the scheduled caste, are today recognized as an artisan group. The programme has thus shifted the community’s social identity while preserving its cultural identity.