“Responding to our proposal, a recent meeting of the EIF board decided to provide support to the project aimed at promoting Nepali Chyangra pashmina in the global market,” a reliable source at the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies (MoCS) told Republica. [break]
The MoCS had forwarded the proposal to the EIF board in January. The source said the support will focus on improving the quality of Chyangra pashmina, promoting its trademark in overseas markets, branding, improving designs and enhancing the institutional capacity of the Nepal Pashmina Industries Association (NPIA), the umbrella organization of Nepali pashmina entrepreneurs.
The program will be implemented through Geneva-based International Trade Center (ITC), a joint agency of the World Trade Organization and the United Nations.
Chief secretary-led national steering committee, which was formed to implement the project, had earlier endorsed the proposal after a technical committee, comprising representatives of the private sector, finalized the proposal on Nepal´s behalf.
The project´s total cost is estimated to stand at US$2 million, of which $1.8 million will be provided by the ITC and $200,000 by the Nepal government.
“The three-year project is expected to establish forward linkages by strengthening competitiveness of Chyangra pashmina, enhancing quality and designs, and registration of trademarks aborad,” said NPIA Chief Program Officer Mandu Babu Adhikari.
According to Adhikari, the trademark of Chyangra pashmina has been registered in 41 countries and the process is underway to get the trademark registered in China, Brazil, Russia, the UAE and South Africa.
Though the government recognized collective trademark of Chyangra pashmina for international promotion some three years ago, its exports have continued to fall in recent years.
According to data compiled by the Trade and Export Promotion Center, total exports of pashmina stood at Rs 1.48 billion in the first nine months of the currently fiscal year, down 5.1 percent from first nine months of the last fiscal year.
Entrepreneurs blame lack of effective promotion of pashmina in the international market for continued decline in exports. Nepal has been exporting pashmina to around 80 countries, many of which are concentrated in Europe and North America.
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