There is no political empowerment without economic empowerment—this is one of the principles that inspired an analysis of economic initiatives led by Indigenous women in Latin America.
Indigenous women’s enterprises in Peru and Colombia contribute significantly to the economic development of their communities, the preservation of their territories, and the well-being of women and their communities. These initiatives impact social, economic, and cultural aspects of Indigenous women’s lives through sustainable and clean agricultural practices. Many not only promote environmental conservation but also ensure community food security.
Embroidery of the Maroti Shobo Association. Photo by María de los Ángeles La Torre Cuadros for RRI.
The publication, Contributions of Indigenous Women’s Entrepreneurships in Colombia and Peru to their Economy, Territorial Governance and Climate Resilience During COVID-19, looks at women’s economic initiatives from eight Indigenous groups. This includes the Shipibo-konibo, Awajún, Asháninka, and Quechua, who are in the departments of Ucayali, San Martín, Pasco, and Lambayeque in Peru; and the Wayuu, Kankuamos, Emberá, and Nasa, who are in the departments of La Guajira, Cesar, Caldas, and Cauca in Colombia.
Each of the enterprises highlighted in the publication goes beyond offering an economic alternative for women and serves as a channel to strengthen women’s leadership and preserve the cultural heritage of their communities. The enterprises, which mostly focus on handmade fabrics showcasing the unique embroidery styles of their communities, handicrafts, and plant-based products for health and wellness, are also forms of survival, rooted in intergenerational knowledge with a deep connection to territory, since all the raw materials, from the wool to the tinters, are taken from their own forests and gardens.
“Before, men did not respect women. Now there is tranquility. There were men who didn’t want women to work. Now, they have the support of their partner; they help each other in whatever is necessary and in the care of the children.”
—Nuwas Awajún Forest Member, Shampuyacu community of Awajún District, San Martín, Peru
A look at Indigenous women-led enterprises in Peru
According to the Ombudsman’s Office of Peru, 41 percent of adolescent Indigenous women in Peru do not complete secondary school, and less than one-third have their own income. The lack of secondary schooling reduces employment opportunities for Indigenous women, creating a scenario of economic dependence when they start a family and leaving them vulnerable to gender inequalities within their homes and communities.
These four enterprises in Peru all have one thing in common: they bring Indigenous women’s motivation to overcome these vulnerable conditions to the forefront through economic empowerment.
Women’s Association of Coffee and Quinoa (AFCQ), photo by Zoila Aurora Cruz Burga for RRI.
The Association of Maroti Shobo Artisans, made up of members of the Shipibo-Konibo people in the Amazon region of Peru, creates and sells products that strongly connect to the ancestral roots, customs, and languages of their community, such as the production of handicrafts using one of their ancestral design systems called Kené, which was declared as National Cultural Heritage in 2008. Maroti Shobo, which means “sales house” (casa de ventas, in Spanish), has been a known name in the Peruvian handicraft world for more than 50 years, but it was in 2003 when three women artisans decided to restructure the Association to take it out of inadequate management and create an organization mainly integrated by women. From that day on, 24 Indigenouswomen partners keep running their shop, which opens every week in Plaza de Armas in Yaricocha.
The Awajún Nuwas Forest Association focuses on preventing deforestation, cultural oblivion, and patriarchal constructs by creating natural and processed products and offering tourism services to foreigners interested in visiting the Nuwas Forest, which has become a sanctuary for Shampuyacu women.
The Association of Ashaninka Women Entrepreneurs Inoperanto Koya (AMEAIK) is dedicated to producing and marketing natural products while striving to empower one million Indigenous women entrepreneurs. In response to the worsening situation of vulnerable and neglected women in their community during the COVID-19 pandemic, AMEAIK resolved to create impactful solutions to support and uplift these women. Inoperanto Koya means hardworking warrior and enterprising woman in the Asháninka language and undoubtedly has given the women the strength to create economic alternatives and actively participate in their community.
The Women’s Association of Coffee and Quinoa (AFCQ) focuses on creating organic and transitional products and is composed of women who self-identify as members of the Quechua Indigenous Peoples. Initially collaborating with the Central de Cafetaleros del Nororiente (CECANOR)—a network that produces and exports certified organic coffee from Chiclayo, Peru—AFCQ members originally produced coffee exclusively for CECANOR. However, as they did not receive direct resources through this partnership, the women established their own independent network, AFCQ, to take greater control of their production and resources.
AMEAIK’s member. Photo María de los Ángeles La Torre for RRI.
All four of these associations share a commitment to legality and transparency, continuous training, and the active leadership of their members, who are mostly Indigenous women who have been marginalized for generations by the established patriarchal structures of their communities and throughout Latin America.
Four entrepreneurship projects led by Indigenous women in Colombia
Entrepreneurships are a tool of resilience and economic empowerment for Colombia’s Indigenous Peoples, especially for those who have been victims of conflict. Many Indigenous women entrepreneurs count on the support of The National Organization of Indigenous People of Colombia, which established gender parity under the law of self-government and supports initiatives by men and/or women that promote economic empowerment based on traditional practices and independent economic systems often found within Indigenous communities.
“The participation and empowerment of women in other scenarios, transmitting knowledge to children and young people, has also allowed us to relate to other productive experiences, carry out exchange processes, and learn about them. It has also made us aware of organic production and environmental management.”
KALEME. Wuayuu family, Ipuana clan. Photo by Angélica Maria Lesmes for RRI
The Association of Artisans of Cauca, called Enredarte con identidad, is a network of weavers from northern Cauca. This initiative was created because of a project funded by the Spanish cooperation AECID in 2007, which aimed to recover the culture and identity of the Nasa and Misak Indigenous People and strengthen Indigenous women’s leadership through economic empowerment. More than 200 Indigenous women joined the association which has as a main product the creation of Nasa’s woven bags. The production process begins with the creation of raw materials, including wool and cabuya, obtained through traditional sheep shearing and the harvesting of fique stems grown in their territories. This initiative has played a vital role in reconnecting Indigenous women with their ancestral weaving practices, which had gradually been replaced within their community by the more widely adopted styles of other Indigenous groups, such as the Wayuu and Arhuaco.
The Association of Kankuama Indigenous Artisans (ASOARKA) is made up of 212 Indigenous women from the Kankuamo reservation of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in Colombia. They have been creating fique handicrafts since 1993 to promote the preservation of cultural practices and respond to the lack of employment of Kankuama women. The woven fabrics have been their tool of economic resistance during the armed conflict and are a way for both women and men to offer economic support to their families.
The Association of Artisans KALEME was created by the Wayuu Indigenous community of La Guajira in 2004. Kaleme was born from an intergenerational tradition of weavers who have learned from their elders since time immemorial. This association creates and sells textiles. It comprises at least 200 associates from communities in the municipality of Uribia and territories on the border between La Guajira and Venezuela.
Rooting Our Ancestral Knowledge in the Ancestral Footsteps (Enraizando Nuestros Saberes Ancestrales) is an organization made up of women from Emberá, an Indigenous group located in Caldas, Colombia, established in 2007. The organization creates and sells an array of products, including ancestral medicines, fabrics, clothing, hygiene products, and food. This project was initiated as a form of resistance and healing to the armed conflict between the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the paramilitary groups. In the early 2000s, a big part of the Emberá territories were occupied by illegal groups; numerous families were forced to move from their land and others were killed, but the women who decided to stay in their territories and the ones who came back after a period of time away, decided to create this Association, which became a space to share their stories heal together the sadness left by the conflict while creating economic support for their families.
How have these enterprises contributed to the empowerment of Indigenous women and territorial governance?
“I have learned to sew, I am freer, I can say what I feel, not to be submissive as I was before. I learned to take charge. I am a brave woman.”
—Indigenous Woman of the Shipibo-Konibo People in Peru and member of AMS
ENREDARTE, formed by Indigenous women from northern Cauca. Photo by Angélica Maria Lesmes for RRI.
At the social level, these enterprises foster trust and the recognition of Indigenous women within their families and communities, transforming traditional gender dynamics by increasing their participation in decision-making spaces.
Despite their proven contributions, these enterprises still require external support in areas such as training, market access, logistics, and fair pricing to ensure long-term sustainability.
Indigenous women’s entrepreneurship initiatives must be supported to ensure their continued positive impact on cultural identity, economic resilience, and social and gender equity.
