Entrepreneurs from G-B valleys display products at 'Development Expo'

The board of directors and management of Aga Khan Rural Support Program (AKRSP) on Thursday arranged 'Development Expo' where entrepreneurs from the valleys of Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral region participated and displayed their products here at a local hotel. A large number of foreigners, businessmen and students participated in the event and showed their interest in the products of Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral region. Products including food items, pictures, furniture, carpets, precious stones and other items were put on display.
World Bank Country Director in Pakistan, Patchamuthu Ilangovan was the chief guest who showed keen interest in the products of entrepreneurs with support of Aga Khan Rural Support Program. Baltistan Art and Crafts Revival Academy arranged traditional woolen shawls, local carpets and all other sorts of handicrafts. Sajjad Hussain said that Baltistan is exporting products on small scale, adding that the export of products can be increased if government gives due attention to the regional development.
Ciqam, a project of Aga Khan Cultural Services Pakistan, also put homemade furniture by women in Hunza on display. Aqeela Bano said that Ciqam provides income generating opportunities and empowers women in Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral. Their core skills include carpentry using greenwood, surveying, plumbing, electrification, masonry, mechanical and hospitality. Akbar Food Private Limited also displayed a stall there. Akbar Food is a small fruit processing facility established in Skardu, Baltistan, with the support of the USAID. It is the only facility in Baltistan equipped with high standard fruit processing equipment and trained fruit processing staff who select, process and pack the fruits of GB under strict hygienic conditions and bring them to the doorsteps of its valued customers. A representative of Prince Aga Khan said that the traditional crafts and industries are manifestation of cultural and civilizational expressions of a society and its authenticity. These are true components of the collective cultural memory that incarnates the life features and the stages through which the society had gone through. With these heritage values in the background, AKRSP sensitized the local community of Ghanche to establish Hamdard Welfare Society. Since then the society has been promoting the indigenous craft making in the region of Chanche, Baltistan.