As part of our ‘Meet Our Indigenous Wayuu Artisans’ series, which introduces our indigenous Wayuu artisans to you in a more up-close-and-personal way, it is our pleasure to share Rosa’s story with you. Rosa is a young woman who used to dream of being a policewoman before she discovered her love for crafting Wayuu bags.
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MEET ROSA
Indigenous Artisan and Coordinator
Although I’ve always loved weaving, I wanted to become a policewoman a few years back. There’s not a lot of options in the region of La Guajira, and I felt it was a job that could provide me with financial stability.
I had to take an exam to pass the police test that cost a considerable amount of money. As I didn’t have enough, I got a private loan at a 10% monthly interest rate I was never able to pay back.
I’ve learnt that it’s possible to earn a stable income from doing what I love the most – making Wayuu mochilas
In the end, I didn’t pass the test and still had to pay back the money loaned. Lombia took on my debt at 0% interest which I was able to pay back in less than a year.
Since then, I’ve also learnt that it’s possible to earn a stable income from doing what I love the most – making Wayuu mochilas that spread beauty around the world.
Here in the Ranchería Cucurumana, our community is like a family, and luckily I’m able to support many others with my earnings.
My goals for this year are to finish building the shared bathroom for our community
My goals for this year are to finish building the shared bathroom for our community so that we no longer have to make long trips to the mountains, and to begin saving up to start a family in the next few years.