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A Fair Price
A fair price ensures that artisans are adequately compensated for the time, labor and material resources invested in making each product. Pricing varies according to the economic and social context in which an artisan works. A fair price is determined by the artisan in conversation with Ten Thousand Villages buyers and staff, and is based on the cost of materials, and a fair wage for the production time and skill level required to make each product. Fair wages enable artisans to meet their needs for food, clothing and shelter.
Fair pricing provides Edith Najjemba, right, a widowed artisan in Uganda, with income to invest in her livelihood and to support her six children. Orphaned at an early age, Najjemba took up basket weaving to support herself.
The income she now earns through fair trade has afforded her the chance to improve her family's quality of life. Najjemba has built a large house with three bedrooms, as well as a dining room, living room, storage and bathroom.
She can now pay for quality education and invest in her children's future. As a side project, she buys pigs that she raises to sell for meat.
Najjemba is a basket weaver for Uganda Crafts, an artisan group that provides work for the most disadvantaged in Ugandan society-including people with disabilities, youth and those suffering from HIV and AIDS.
Fair Trade
