Japan eyes cooperation with India in bamboo craft sector in Tripura

 A team from the Japanese Embassy in New Delhi, along with a few bamboo artisans from Japan, are on a two-day visit to Agartala, Tripura, to discuss possibilities of a India-Japan cooperation in bamboo craft sector.

The Japanese team, led by Kenko Sone, Minister, Economic and Development, Embassy of Japan, India, is on a visit to the region and arrived here on Wednesday.

"This is my first visit to Tripura. Since Japan has been focusing on the collaboration in the north-eastern region with the Indian government, one of the areas asking Japan for support is the bamboo crafts. We are very happy to collaborate with Tripura on the same and this collaboration will be expanded to the whole north-eastern region as a whole," Sone told ANI.

The team visited Crafts & More, a showroom of unique bamboo handicraft made by artisans, mainly from the tribal section of people, trained and funded under the Tripura JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency) project.

"Few bamboo artisans from Japan have come here with a team from the Japan Embassy in New Delhi to look for a possibility of an India-Japan cooperation in the craft sector. They have been visiting various outlets in the state. We have shown the strength and uniqueness of Tripura in the bamboo sector. We are looking for export possibilities in the sector," Angshuman Dey, CEO and Project Director of Tripura JICA project, told ANI.

On Thursday, the Japanese team will hold a workshop at the Bamboo and Cane Development Institute (BCDI), Agartala, to have a discussion with various stakeholders in the bamboo handicraft sector of the state.

During the workshop, they shall exchange ideas with the traditional bamboo artisans on the scope and development of bamboo handicraft in Tripura through capacity building for value addition as per the market demand and for sustainable development.

The second phase of Tripura JICA - an external aided project in the state - is likely to start from December. For the same, around Rs 1000 crore soft loan agreement has been signed between JICA and state government.