Market prospects for allo-based products have expanded in Rolpa as there is a growing trend of giving products made of this hemp fibre as gifts.

Makers of allo products have been earning a good income. Bags, caps, mobile purses, coats and jackets made of this natural fibre are produced in the district.

Workers at the Rolpa Community Allo and Garment Industry in Liwang, the district headquarters, always appear to be busy with the growing number of people coming to buy their products. The factory which produces allo products was established six years ago.

People of Rolpa have been increasingly involved in producing handicrafts made of allo as they can use their own skills to produce them. The standard of living of many of them has been boosted due to the popularity of the handicrafts.

Among the 17 investors who have put money in the Rolpa Community Allo and Garment Industry, 16 are women. The proprietors and workers can be seen at work from early in the morning until evening.

“If we can get enough raw materials on time, we can produce more and generate more revenue,” said Srimaya Roka, one of the proprietors of the enterprise. She is also its treasurer.

Allo is produced in large quantities in Rolpa, Rukum, Pyuthan and Salyan districts, but its commercial use has been limited. However, things are changing. The District Cottage and Small Industry Development Committee has been assisting those who are involved in allo production.

“We have programmes to promote handicrafts made of allo,” said Bal Krishna Acharya, chief of the committee. The committee has been providing training in allo production and its commercial use.

Tul Bahadur Gharti Magar, another proprietor and chairman of the company, received training from the committee and started the factory. Magar, who participated in the Maoist insurgency, went into business with a few partners after the peace process began.

According to the Cottage and Small Industry Development Committee, allo-based enterprises were registered only after the peace process began.

Since then, about a dozen factories have been registered in the district. They have been set up with investments ranging from Rs50,000 to Rs2 million.

There are more allo-based factories in the villages because it easier to get the fibre there.

Krishni Budha, proprietor of Liwan Allo and Thread Industry based in Homagaun, said they were producing raw materials by themselves. “Most of the women in the village have bought shares in the company,” she said.