Artisans Angkor was created in 1999 to help young people find work in their home villages, allowing them to practice their crafts while providing them with a vocation. It was created as part of a three-year project to integrate young artisans trained by the Chantiers-Ecoles de Formation Professionnelle - whose objective is to revive traditional craft skills (stone carving, wood carving, lacquering, gilding and silk processing). We place a strong emphasis on the authenticity of its products to the Khmer culture. In 2003, we became a limited company with minor public participation and are now completely self-financed.

We have created over 1,000 jobs for both artisans (657) and non-craftsmen in rural Cambodia, by investing in new apprenticeships and skills creation via continuous training and setting up new village workshops.

Thirteen workshops are currently operating in 12 villages in Siem Reap province, including silk, wood carving, stone carving and finishing workshops (polychromy, lacquering, gilding). Young apprentices aged 18 to 25 are selected from rural areas through skill and motivation tests, and undertake six to eight months of free training. They are trained in groups of 15-30 people, and receive a living allowance for the duration of their training.

We contribute to the development of rural areas in Siem Reap province through the social, economic and professional advancement of the artisans, and pioneering a new social policy in Cambodia, guaranteeing levels of pay and social and medical welfare. The artisans have formed an association called Artisanat Khmer which has a 20% stake in the company, giving employees a voice in the decision making process.