Handicraft industry boosting economy, promoting culture: President

Kathmandu, Dec. 15:President Ramchandra Paudel has said that the handicraft sector is not only important to Nepal’s industrial development but also vital for promoting Nepal’s culture and heritage across the globe.

Inaugurating the 20th Handicraft Trade Fair and the 18th Handicraft Competition in Kathmandu on Thursday, the President said that the handicraft business had the potential to enhance Nepal’s prestige.

President Paudel asserted that the development and expansion of the handicraft industry would help Nepal cultivate a distinguished identity in the world and contribute to the country’s economic and social progress.

Highlighting the fact that handicrafts were the ancestral profession of many ethnic groups, Paudel remarked that their originality, rooted in age-old skills and knowledge, were not easily replicated. He stressed the importance of protecting the intellectual property related to such materials and emphasised the need to pass the traditional skills on to younger generations.

Informing that handicrafts from Nepal were being exported to 60 countries, and that 1.1 million people were directly or indirectly involved in the sector, the President called for the establishment a handicraft village to develop the business. Poudel further noted how handicrafts helped boost tourism.

The Trade Fair and Competition is being organised by the Federation of Handicraft Associations of Nepal (FHAN) from Thursday to Monday. 

Prachanda Man Shakya, president of the Association, shared that the event featured 120 stalls, displaying jewellery, sculptures, items of fine arts and clothing. He also believed that the five-day programme would attract 100,000 national and international visitors.

Foreign exhibitors, including traders from Pakistan and Bangladesh, have also participated in the fair, informed Shakya. The organisers have also informed that artworks from 70 artists are on display at the event.

As for the handicraft competition, at least 15 participants have participated in each category, FHAN informed. The first, second and third winners in each category shall be awarded gold, silver and bronze medals and cash prizes of Rs. 50,000, Rs. 30,000 and Rs. 20,000 

respectively.