Download logoIn Zambia's rural communities, women have long known how to weave. What they were missing was everything that comes after: the markets, the training, and someone willing to walk the path with them.
When Doris Phiri arrived at the Handloom and Textile Technology Association of Zambia (HATTAZ) as an intern, the organization was still finding its feet. It had been recently registered, was operating under the Cotton Association of Zambia, and was working with rural women who had weaving skills but little else. They had no access to machinery, no markets, and no business training.
Doris had a passion for women's empowerment and community development. What she did not yet know was that she would stay, grow, and eventually lead.
Zambia's handloom sector is at the crossroad of culture, livelihoods, and trade. Cotton is one of the country's key agricultural commodities, and handweaving has long been practised in rural communities, but the connection between that craft and commercial opportunity had never been fully made. Women were producing, but were not yet being paid what their work was worth.
Support from the International Trade Centre through the ACP Business-Friendly programme began to shift that. HATTAZ –a Lusaka-based, member-based organization empowering rural women and youth in the Zambian cotton sector – received technical assistance covering advanced weaving, product development, branding, quality control, and market linkages. Master trainers were created within communities.
Doris, initially working as an ITC national consultant, was at the centre of it, coordinating training sessions, accompanying women in Chadiza, Mazabuka, Ndola, Choma, Petauke, and Katete as cooperatives were formally registered and began to see real results.
‘ITC opened the first doors for HATTAZ,’ says Doris. ‘We moved beyond just training. We began producing, understanding quality, accessing markets, and gaining visibility. But most importantly, it transformed rural livelihoods. That's what truly matters.’
The numbers tell part of the story. In 2024, following an ITC-supported regional training in collaboration with WeEffect, women's cooperatives collectively earned over $7,000 from international product sales – proof that connecting skills to global markets changes the equation.
Building on that momentum, HATTAZ secured support from WeEffect under the Women's Economic Empowerment in the Cotton Value Chain project, which Doris now leads as coordinator. The work covers financial literacy, climate-smart innovation, handloom quality standards, and advocacy for gender-equitable policy. And Doris leads all of it.
‘To me, empowerment is about walking with people until they see the strength they've always had,’ she says. ‘The women I work with have become like family. Seeing their confidence grow and their livelihoods improve – that's the most fulfilling part of my journey.’
She arrived as an intern, and stayed to lead. And the women weaving across Zambia's rural communities are stronger for it.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of International Trade Centre.
