About Fair Trade

Fair Trade is a social movement that promotes the standards of social policy in areas that are related to the production of Fair Trade items, focusing especially on the exportation of goods from the developing world and the process by which this is carried out.

The motivation for the Fair Trade movement is to work closely with marginalised producers and their artisans to assist them in moving from a position of potential exploitation and vulnerability to one of self sufficiency.

There are many social, international, religious and environmental proponents of the Fair Trade movement. While the idea of Fair Trade first became a reality in the 1940s and 1950s and was viewed as a political movement, the current movement was developed in Europe in the 1960s.

There are several national and international organizations that co-ordinate and promote the efforts of Fair Trade importers. Among the largest are FLO, IFAT, NEWS, EFTA and FTF but more federations exist that assist Fair Trade importers, retailers and other networks, both nationally and internationally.

At Mafundi Crafts we just want to see the artisans responsible for producing these wonderful items being paid fairly for their efforts and being allowed to build community services that we take for granted.

If you would like further details about the key principles of the Fair Trade movement then please contact us and we will try our best to help you find out more about this truly inspiring grassroots campaign.