This trade relationship is currently not active.

 

Profile of CONTIGO´s partner Swane

Products

Baskets and products made of metal

Location

Dakar, Senegal – distance to Europe: 4,800km

Founded in 2010

History

• Selly Wane, born and raised in Senegal, studies of economics in Wuppertal, Germany
• She finances her studies by importing crafts from Senegal
• Selly learns about sustainability during her studies with the Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy
• Selly writes her PhD thesis about the influence of ecological and social sustainability of a business on shareholder value
• 2010: Founding of SWANE, Selly enshrines ethical and social responsibility in the business model and is convinced that this will make her even more successful
• 2011: Swane meets CONTIGO
• 2015: Participation in several trade fairs, new customers, production increases

Cooperation with CONTIGO since 2011

Structure of the business

Number of employees:

• 3 part-time employees in the workshop (recycling products)
• Partnership with 4 external workshops (production of metal items)
• Partnership with weaving cooperatives from villages (production of baskets)

Organisation of workforce:

In Germany:

• Selly Wane: product development, marketing
• Three additional freelance employees for communications, website maintenance, and marketing

In Senegal:

• Regular meetings once a week with all employees to coordinate and optimise production and to improve work environment
• Swane workshop: 3 people
• Partnership with 4 external workshops
• Partnerships with village cooperatives from the region Thiès (approx. 70km east of Dakar), for basket weaving
  • Weaving is only done by women
  • These women weave baskets because it is a convenient way to earn extra income next to farming, taking care of their households and children
  • Organisation of  their work:
    • One person is responsible for buying/distributing raw material, quality control, the collection of baskets and transportation to Dakar
    • Women share the orders among themselves
• Swane supplies the raw materials (plastic stripes for baskets, metall) to the producer groups

Sales

• Home market (10%)
• Exports (90%) to Germany

Goals

• To employ all employees of the Swane workshop on a full-time basis
• To provide trainings to all employees according to their needs and skill set
• To establish a platform for the women in the village to organise themselves
• To develop high quality products with modern designs made out of recycled materials

Special features

Why does CONTIGO work with Swane: They are a very promising company with a dedication to Fairtrade. The baskets are best sellers.

 

Fairtrade classification

FTP = Fairtrade in Progress, a visit in Senegal has not taken place as yet.

 

Fairtrade aspects

Swane complies with the following Fairtrade Principles:

No child labour

Every employee must be of full age. Apprentices can be allowed by the age of 15.

No discrimination

No discrimination due to gender, disability, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, political orientation, or infection with HIV

Fair wages

• Average wage in the sector/region: € 2,56/day
• Wage at Swane: Triple of the daily minimum wage
• Bonuses for:
  • Higher quality of the products
  • Complying with the production schedule
  • Religious holidays

Humane working conditions

Working hours:

Employees organise the time and work by themselves:

• 6-8 hours/day
• 5 days/week (a sixth day is optional)

Social benefits:

• Breakfast and lunch provided

 

Transparency

• SAR (Self Assessment Report) was duly submitted to CONTIGO

 

Country information

See Encyclopaedia Britannica: Senegal

 

Photos