17 Sep 2015

Samoa weavers told to go traditional

4:02 pm on 17 September 2015

Women in Samoa are being encouraged to focus on weaving fine mats with traditional materials, rather than producing hard mats.

Women in Business Development Incorporated recently hosted two symposiums to discuss quality issues and train new weavers in the art of weaving Ie Sae - the traditional material.

Cultural and protocol advisor, Fuimaono Rosa Me, says weavers have increasingly been using Ie Malo for weaving but she says it's not part of the culture and doesn't produce good quality mats.

"It goes bad very quickly, it doesn't last long, while the Ie Sae lasts for years and years like we've done in the old days and that's why we want to revive this culture again to the women's role."

Fuimaono Rosa Me says it takes longer to weave using Ie Sae but the final product is so much better.