Women explore commercial potential of Himalayan fiber-producing wild plant

Lydia — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 09:06:30 +0000

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Nepal, June 2013 - Women in the mountain region of Nepal are at the forefront of developing the commercial potential of a wild plant that is indigenous in the Himalayas. The plant is known as the Himalayan giant nettle. The Nepalese women are associated with WINNER-Nepal, a women entrepreneurs’ network for cooperation and business development.

Allo is a tough fiber but after continued washing it becomes soft and gentle on the skin. Himalayan giant nettle grows from 1.5 to 3 meters in height with perennial root stock. It is found in 52 of the 75 districts of Nepal.The plant bears both the male and female flowers in the same stalk. It grows wild under forest canopies between the altitudes of 1500 m. to 3000 m. The plant is sturdy and grows well even in difficult environments. Different varieties grow together in the same shrub.

In the hilly districts of Sankhuwasabha, Pyuthan, Parbat, Soluknumbu, Myagi, Achham, Bajhang and Bajura, local folks are engaged in allo production as it required for every cultural and religious function of the local inhabitants who hail mainly from Rai, Gurung and Magar communities. In the absence of new technology or machine to process barks and stalk of the nettle plant, the local people depend on manual labor to make the thread and weave it into fabrics.

The strict gender segregation in the mountain region of Nepal allows only women to be involved in allo thread and fabric production. For one, they are skilled in weaving and knitting allo thread into various novelty products. The work is extremely time-consuming, hence production is slow. Majority of women in the mountain communities of Nepal are involved in allo production. Allo thread making requires such tedious work that an individual can only make 200-400 grams of thread in a day.

Himalayan nettle plants are harvested once a year from the forests. Because there is no nettle plant cultivation at a commercial level, the allo fabric is in short supply. Apparels made from allo are very expensive as compared to other fibers like cotton. Smaller products made from allo fiber have been introduced in the market. Producers, however, have been exporting the fabrics as raw materials to India, Japan and Sri Lanka.

At present, the Nepalese Government has no policy yet for promoting allo fabrics but individual organizations and businesspersons have been making efforts to raise awareness about the fabric. The demand for allo apparel is on the rise as more and more foreigners find the uniqueness of the fiber being soothing to hypersensitive skin. But the pace for allo being used in apparel is extremely slow. Instead, demand for allo thread is rising rapidly for carpet making. Allo could be an important source of income for people in poor mountain communities since the raw materials are found in most parts of Nepal. Besides, nettle plant grows well even under difficult natural conditions and pesticides and fertilisers do not have to be used to keep the plant alive as is mostly done with cotton. Unlike other plants, the nettle plant regenerates from the leftover stems year after year.

For further information you may contact: SABAH NEPAL at http://www.sabahnp.org/

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Alliance-building among women’s small enterprises is crucial to business survival

Lydia — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 09:26:53 +0000

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The Philippines, June 2013 - Alliance-building among women-managed enterprises was the main theme of a training program for participants from eleven countries in Asia: Bhutan, Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand and Philippines held at the Women’s Center of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority of the Philippines, in collaboration with the Japanese International Cooperation Agency.

The WINNER was one of the case studies presented at the training program. As in previous years during similar international joint training programs, WINNER provided a learning module on alliance-building through the formation of a network of women’s enterprises and cooperation to strengthen the production supply chain.

Invited to be a resource person was WINNER Regional Coordinator for Asia Benjamin Milano who expounded on the success stories of selected members of the WINNER network. He said: “From the shadow of the formal economy, many of the women-managed microenterprises have evolved to become SMEs. Starting as home-based informal livelihoods, these nascent small businesses, through active cooperation with others have made it to the formal economy.”

“Alliance-building or networking is shaping the landscape of modern business, particularly among livelihood enterprises. The women’s micro and small enterprises are doing their best to step up to the challenge of competition in a globalized economy.”

“The impact of building alliance or creating networking arrangement among women’s micro/small enterprises is immense. How to sustain these alliance and business cooperation initiatives continues to be a challenge. As there are new entrants into the entrepreneurship domain, so too all the players that exit or fall along the way. But exposure, nurturing, and establishing support system are important measures to build self-confidence of women to stay in business,” he said.

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devnetinternational.org - WINNER network

Women explore commercial potential of Himalayan fiber-producing wild plant

Alliance-building among women’s small enterprises is crucial to business survival