ABSTRACT
Profile of women weavers who process raw material and undertake weaving activities
Women weavers processing wool and camel hair are mainly from poor households who work in haste making one qashabiya at a time because they use the proceeds from the sale of one qashabiya to buy the raw material for producing the next one, as they do not have a capital that allows them to produce many items before deciding to sell when prices are satisfactory.This pushes women to sell their products at low prices.The situation puts women in a weak position, especially as they do not own property, have no credit, are generally absent from cooperatives, and their fallback position is weak. They also lack access to information about governmental strategies, which break women’s roles from the beginning. Overall, the raw material processing and weaving activities performed under precarious conditions using traditional equipment puts their health at high risk, in particular as they do not benefit from any insurance coverage. In general all activities could be performed either individually or collectively.
However, in our sample, women weavers work either individually or collectively depending on the type of qashabiya, and on availability of women both within the household and from the neighborhood when they agree to exchange labor between themselves (Table 5.1). Individual activities comprise the first stages of the production process, from washing wool and camel hair up to combing, and when necessary dying the wool. Most of the other activities are performed collectively either for socializing, sharing ‘what is up’ and local stories, fostering a sense of belonging and building mutual support Women weavers of different ages face a number of health and safety risks, caused
by long working hours, cramped workplaces, and malnutrition due to poverty, poor healthcare facilities and lack of recreational opportunities.
