Developments in the Production of Carpets in Kabul

November 01, 2006

Important organisational changes have been made in the carpet weaving training school and factory in Kabul following a visit in July 2006 by Afghan Action Chief Executive, Chris Beales, and our Afghan consultant, Abdullah Haiwad.

As described in earlier reports, the training school was initially set up in September 2006, with assistance from a local partner, the Afghan Committee for Development. By mid-2006, some 45 young men and women had completed the first training course. The second phase of the project has been the establishment of a factory where graduates from the school are able to continue to work, and so ensure a growing supply of carpets.

The success of the project over the first year was such that Afghan Action Ltd, which is licensed to operate in Afghanistan, is now able to run both the training school and the factory on its own.

Under the new organisational structure, put into place during July, both the training school and the factory, which are in adjoining premises, are under the overall management of Arash Yharmand, former Financial Officer, assisted by Yama Salehi, who is responsible for managing the office and ancillary staff. Two skilled Master Trainers design and supervise the production of the carpets and manage graduates and trainees. Experienced trainers are responsible for recruiting and teaching the trainees to weave and the making of the carpets in both the school and the factory.

The trainees receive a regular stipend during training, and the graduates in the factory receive a fixed salary and fees based on their monthly output of carpets. All continue to receive meals, literacy and numeracy training (now accredited by the Afghan Department for Education) and health care. Working conditions in both school and factory have been greatly improved with running water now installed.

Afghan Action is supported in its overall running of the project in Kabul by two well established NGOs, Children in Crisis and Afghanaid. We have also benefited from support from Afghan government officials, DfID staff and others.

Carpets produced by the training school during the first course, and also by graduates in the factory, have been sent to London, and are being sold through various outlets, including displays and sales at local fairs and other special events in churches, homes, the Houses of Parliament, the Department of International Development (DFID), and through regional partners in other parts of the UK.

Now that a reliable supply of carpets has been established, our marketing team will seek outlets through retailers to ensure a steady and reliable source of income for the project.  Other marketing and sales initiatives being taken or under consideration approaching interior designers and house and office builders. A new ecommerce site is being designed to enable internet orders to be processed and a CD of carpets will shortly also be available and kept up to date on a quarterly basis.

Carpets (for example runners for hallways) can be made to order, and we are also able to design carpets showing the names of organisations and their logos.

The success of the project has enabled Afghan Action to explore the possibility of producing other products in the region, to complement the carpets.

These include setting up a Marketing Agency for many products made by small businesses and on training programmes (run by NGOs) which don’t have reliable sales outlets or markets; establishing links in the province of Maidan Wardak where we have been offered 2 acres of land to develop work. We have also discussed with the British Government’s Conflicts Adviser the possibility of funding for developing, in the future, small businesses, education, healthcare and a medicine factory in Helmand.