Tuesday March 19th, 2024
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Cairo's CRAFFITI Egypt Powered by Ebda3 Men Masr Showcases the Finest Handicrafts Around

The exhibition hosts artwork from 200 talented local exhibitors.

Staff Writer

CRAFFITI Egypt is an annual handicrafts exhibition taking place at Fairground, Nasr City, showcasing and selling the work of more than 200 local exhibitors who’ve got that magical artistic touch to woo you at every corner of the room. The 18th of October is the last day of the exhibition - time's running out, so head down to Nasr City! Find a myriad of different items like clothes, bags, items to spice up your home with, accessories, pottery, carpets, snacks, little things to pamper yourselves like hair and skin products, and even oils and honey. Of course, these are all handmade – none of that big industry stuff. The artists, or creators if you prefer have come from all over Egypt to showcase and sell their products. You’ll be hard pressed to find another place with prices so low for items crafted with great quality, and most importantly with some of that artisan love. It's doubtful you'll be going home without a couple of new items in hand. 

 “Ebda3 men Masr” is an initiative which evolved as one of the main CSR platforms launched by ALEXBANK early 2016. Based on the concept of Creating Shared Value (CSV), ALEXBANK becomes a full -fledged partner of citizens and community blending the creation of social value with the growth of the economy. The focus is mainly on women and youth in Upper Egypt and to date, Ebda3 men Masr has benefited more than 4000 craftsmen and women across Egypt 

Samah Samir, co-founder of Matbakh Sooka, an online cooking channel that amassed over 5 million followers, is as enthusiastic as we are (or maybe even a little more) about CRAFFITI, as you can see in the video below. 

It’s no news that the good folk at ALEXBANK are deeply committed to supporting the handicrafts industry in Egypt; the Ebda3 Men Masr initiative, which they established in 2016 does just that, in the many local-supporting projects they’ve already undertaken under this fairly new umbrella. The initiative is based on the concept of Creating Shared Value (CSV), and basically creates opportunities for marginalised communities and preserves Egyptian heritage.

You’ve got some really cool and varied exhibits; from a lady selling healthy homemade snacks made strictly with no sugar or additives, next to a man that gathers a bunch of old items, such as old wooden doors to reproduce into amazing new products, such as wardrobes. Exhibitors also perform live crafts performances for the audiences to watch and get to know about the story behind every piece of art. Craffiti Egypt is not just an exhibition, it is a chance to know more about Egypt’s crafts, buy authentic pieces of art and meet the people behind them.

Samah Samir heads down to the exhibit to show us a little on what's going on, as well as some interesting products being sold. 

Ebda3 men Masr has a significant outreach program implemented across all governorates through more than 25 partnerships and collaborations between several institutions, NGOs, governmental entities as well as individuals. Main partnerships are with the Ministry of Social Solidarity, the Egyptian Export Council of Handicrafts, Fair Trade Egypt, Egypt Network for Integrated Development (ENID), Yadaweya and Tunis Village in Fayoum. The focus is mainly on women and youth in Upper Egypt and to date, Ebda3 men Masr has benefited more than 4000 craftsmen and women across Egypt.

 ALEXBANK more than plays its part in the support of local art in its sponsorship of “Craffiti Egypt”, and now it’s your turn. 

You can now get your hands on many of these products throughout the year on the Ebda3 Men Masr online sales platform, and you can also check out CRAFFITI’s Facebook page to find out more about its role in the initiative.

Main image from CRAFFITI Egypt on Facebook.

The content of this article is sponsored.