Sheer neglect takes sheen off Baloch handicrafts

QUETTA:

The handicrafts of Balochistan have a potential to provide the much-needed employment opportunities to the locals but it needs government attention in order to be properly marketed.

A variety of handicrafts are being produced in large quantity across the province and they are hugely popular across the country too but due to lack of marketing there are no buyers around for these items, an official of Balochistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry said.

He said the government should play its due role in promoting handicrafts being made in the neglected rural and semi-urban areas of the province by arranging exhibitions, trade fairs and craft bazaars both at home and abroad to create a market for them.

He said the government should also work for skills development and capacity building of handicraft makers, besides introducing a value addition mechanism for them. He also suggested that the authorities should establish handicrafts stalls to generate revenue and create employment opportunities as it would acquaint the people of different regions with diverse culture and traditions of Balochistan.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, June 6^th, 2022.