Revitalizing Stapar rugs

On Thursday, September 18, in the city hall in Sombor, a meeting was held as a part of the project for revitalization of stapar rugs, implemented by Ethno Network in cooperation with the city administration under the auspices of the Ambassador of Australia Julia Feeney and the National Alliance for Local Economic Development - NALED.

The meeting was attended by Sofija Arsic - Ethno Network Coordinator, Iva Radic – office manager, Sinisa Todorovic - a city council member in charge of economy and finance, Jovana Grujic – representative of office for local economic development, along with representatives of local associations and craft cooperatives. The meeting was opened by Mr. Todorovic who pointed out that this project should become a cultural mirror of the city of Sombor, and that the local government will provide all necessary support for Stapar rugs and handicraft producers to regain their market position and public recognition. Sofija Arsic presented previous work and the results of Ethno Network and laid out the goals and next steps for the project \'Revitalization of Stapar rugs.\'

After the presentation of the work and the capacity of local associations and cooperatives, it was concluded that in Sombor, there is a good background and strong interest in education and the preservation of local brands such as Stapar rugs. Participants have proposed that the city considers the competition for the trademark of the city of Sombor, which should carry an authentic motive like those of Stapar rugs. A large number of registered handicraft producers in Sombor holds the official crafts certificate \'Open Hand\' which is a good prerequisite for the further implementation of the project. Most local producers enjoy the support of the city and participate in the sales exhibitions locally and in neighboring countries.

\'Nowadays in Stapar there is almost no interest in the education and development of stapar rugs / the loom are usually not in use, and the local association members are