Have a look at http://www.novica.com/

They specialize in home decor products form all around the world, West Africa included: http://west-africa.novica.com/

They claim they operate under fair trade principles: http://www.novica.com/customerservice/ - although, i do not see any fair trade certificates clearly displayed on their site (do fair-trade certificates exist at all? i'm not an expert on that).

* as per your idea: any scarce product, accompanied with a great story, could sell really well. go ahead and let the world know of the unknown beauty Africa is.