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Egyptian Handicrafts Clusters: Barriers to Development & Suggested Policy Reforms
Egypt has a large number of handicrafts clusters, greater than any other industrial clusters in the country. Handicrafts clusters, also known as Creative or artisans’ clusters, are geographic concentrations of households that produce a variety of handmade goods. Such goods include, inter alia, wood...
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AUC Knowledge Fountain
2022
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| _version_ | 1867613421123403776 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Mohamed Soliman Mohamed, Amal |
| author_browse | Mohamed Soliman Mohamed, Amal |
| author_facet | Mohamed Soliman Mohamed, Amal |
| author_sort | Mohamed Soliman Mohamed, Amal |
| collection | Thesis |
| description | Egypt has a large number of handicrafts clusters, greater than any other industrial clusters in the country. Handicrafts clusters, also known as Creative or artisans’ clusters, are geographic concentrations of households that produce a variety of handmade goods. Such goods include, inter alia, wood works, metal works, stones, and handmade textiles. They contribute to employment creation and poverty alleviation, especially in rural and deprived areas. The development of handicrafts clusters has been the focus of many institutions including World Bank, United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), Micro, Small & Medium Enterprise Development Agency (MSMEDA), and Ministry of Trade & Industry; however, the overall impact of the sector in the country is inadequate. Therefore, the main purposes of this study are to: first, investigate the main barriers that hinder the development of Egyptian handicrafts clusters; second, determine this sector’s key needs to thrive and grow, third, to suggest some reform policies that could be beneficial for the sector’s development. In order to tackle the aforementioned objectives, fifteen semi-structured interviews have been conducted with artisans from different creative industrial clusters, as well as public officials who are in charge of developing handicrafts clusters in Egypt. The analysis illustrates several obstacles such as the absence of coordination between development organizations; the poor relevance of interventions to the sector needs; poor access to markets and business models; poor marketing skills and opportunities; low income and high vulnerability of artisans and weak regulations. The study highlights the need for an institutional body managing the sector and for accurate data about the field, and artisans’ social protection among others. Therefore, a distinct way is paved for policymakers to set up sustainable solutions and mechanisms to remove these barriers to enhance the clusters’ economic and social performance. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:fount.aucegypt.edu:etds-2884 |
| institution | American University in Cairo (Egypt) |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:35:51.500Z |
| license_str | Not specified — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from AUC Knowledge Fountain — bepress |
| publishDate | 2022 |
| publishDateRange | 2022 |
| publishDateSort | 2022 |
| publisher | AUC Knowledge Fountain |
| publisherStr | AUC Knowledge Fountain |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | AUC Knowledge Fountain — bepress |
| spelling | oai:fount.aucegypt.edu:etds-2884 Egyptian Handicrafts Clusters: Barriers to Development & Suggested Policy Reforms Mohamed Soliman Mohamed, Amal Egypt has a large number of handicrafts clusters, greater than any other industrial clusters in the country. Handicrafts clusters, also known as Creative or artisans’ clusters, are geographic concentrations of households that produce a variety of handmade goods. Such goods include, inter alia, wood works, metal works, stones, and handmade textiles. They contribute to employment creation and poverty alleviation, especially in rural and deprived areas. The development of handicrafts clusters has been the focus of many institutions including World Bank, United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), Micro, Small & Medium Enterprise Development Agency (MSMEDA), and Ministry of Trade & Industry; however, the overall impact of the sector in the country is inadequate. Therefore, the main purposes of this study are to: first, investigate the main barriers that hinder the development of Egyptian handicrafts clusters; second, determine this sector’s key needs to thrive and grow, third, to suggest some reform policies that could be beneficial for the sector’s development. In order to tackle the aforementioned objectives, fifteen semi-structured interviews have been conducted with artisans from different creative industrial clusters, as well as public officials who are in charge of developing handicrafts clusters in Egypt. The analysis illustrates several obstacles such as the absence of coordination between development organizations; the poor relevance of interventions to the sector needs; poor access to markets and business models; poor marketing skills and opportunities; low income and high vulnerability of artisans and weak regulations. The study highlights the need for an institutional body managing the sector and for accurate data about the field, and artisans’ social protection among others. Therefore, a distinct way is paved for policymakers to set up sustainable solutions and mechanisms to remove these barriers to enhance the clusters’ economic and social performance. 2022-01-31T08:00:00Z thesis application/pdf https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/1864 https://fount.aucegypt.edu/context/etds/article/2884/viewcontent/amal_mohamed_soliman_thesis.pdf Theses and Dissertations AUC Knowledge Fountain Handicrafts Clusters; development barriers; clusters’ needs |
| spellingShingle | Handicrafts Clusters; development barriers; clusters’ needs Mohamed Soliman Mohamed, Amal Egyptian Handicrafts Clusters: Barriers to Development & Suggested Policy Reforms |
| title | Egyptian Handicrafts Clusters: Barriers to Development & Suggested Policy Reforms |
| title_full | Egyptian Handicrafts Clusters: Barriers to Development & Suggested Policy Reforms |
| title_fullStr | Egyptian Handicrafts Clusters: Barriers to Development & Suggested Policy Reforms |
| title_full_unstemmed | Egyptian Handicrafts Clusters: Barriers to Development & Suggested Policy Reforms |
| title_short | Egyptian Handicrafts Clusters: Barriers to Development & Suggested Policy Reforms |
| title_sort | egyptian handicrafts clusters barriers to development suggested policy reforms |
| topic | Handicrafts Clusters; development barriers; clusters’ needs |
| url | https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/1864 https://fount.aucegypt.edu/context/etds/article/2884/viewcontent/amal_mohamed_soliman_thesis.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT mohamedsolimanmohamedamal egyptianhandicraftsclustersbarrierstodevelopmentsuggestedpolicyreforms |