NSRLM, Industree Foundation officials pose for a photo after singing the MoU in Kohima on July 11.
Kohima, July 12 (MExN): The Nagaland State Rural Livelihoods Mission (NSRLM) and Bengaluru-based non-profit Industree Foundation have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to integrate 30,000 smallholder women farmers into the bamboo value chain and promote women-led enterprises in the state.
The collaboration forms part of the Bamboo Sub-Sector Initiative under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) of the Union Ministry of Rural Development, which aims to empower one million rural women across the country through bamboo cultivation and improved market linkages over the next four to five years.
Under the partnership, Industree Foundation will serve as the technical and knowledge partner to NSRLM in promoting bamboo cultivation on fallow and underutilised land, strengthening value chains and establishing women-led collective enterprises.
The MoU was signed by NSRLM Mission Director and Joint Secretary, Rural Development, Moa Sangtam, in the presence of Additional Mission Director Theose Thongtsar, Chief Operating Officer M Rollan Lotha, State Programme Manager (Farm) Dr Sokishumo Kithan, Industree Foundation Chief Executive Officer Neju George Abraham and Senior Manager (Project Operations) Remya Devan.
Commenting on the partnership, Abraham said bamboo was deeply embedded in Nagaland's culture and everyday life and that the state's rich bamboo diversity offered significant commercial potential.
He said the collaboration would focus on developing certified bamboo plantations, facilitating carbon credit accreditation, establishing processing units, developing new bamboo products and connecting producers with high-value domestic and international markets.
Industree Foundation said it has been working with smallholder farmers, most of them women, to cultivate bamboo on degraded and underutilised land, enabling them to generate sustainable incomes while contributing to climate resilience.
According to the organisation, bamboo cultivation begins providing regular income from the fourth year onwards and can continue to yield harvests for more than 40 years. The foundation also follows a seed-to-market approach to build traceable supply chains for national and global markets.
Industree has previously entered into similar partnerships with State Rural Livelihood Missions in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Telangana and Tripura to promote bamboo-based livelihoods among women farmers.
The organisation also said it has secured India's first Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Forest Management certification for 6,671 women bamboo farmers in Karnataka and Maharashtra, enabling access to certified global markets for bamboo products.
