Konkan Impact Study Final

Breaking Barriers and Creating Capital

Sustainable Development with Bamboo in the Konkan Region, Maharashtra, India

I.V. Ramanuja Rao, Bhargavi Motukuri, Sanjeev Karpe

cibart

© 2009

International Network for Bamboo and Rattan & Centre for Indian Bamboo Resource and Technology

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

The opinions expressed in this book are those of the authors and need not necessarily represent those of the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR) and the Centre for Indian Bamboo Resource & Technology (CIBART). The presentation of materials in this publication and in maps that appear herein does not imply the expression of any opinion on the part of INBAR and CIBART concerning the legal status of any country or the delineation of frontiers or boundaries.

This publication is based on information and data provided by the Konkan Bamboo and Cane Development Centre (KONBAC).

International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR)PO Box 100102-86, Beijing 100102, P. R. China Tel: +86-10-6470 6161; Fax: +86-10-6470 2166Email: [email protected]

Centre for Indian Bamboo Resource & Technology (CIBART)A-408, Defence Colony, New Delhi 110024, IndiaTel: +91-11-2433 4801/02; Fax: +91-11-2433 4804E-mail: [email protected]

ISBN: 81-86247-48-3

Breaking Barriers and Creating Capital

Sustainable Development with Bamboo in the Konkan Region, Maharashtra, India

I.V. Ramanuja RaoBhargavi Motukuri

Sanjeev Karpe

cibart

Acknowledgements

Mr Mohan Hodawdekar

Mr George Joel

Mr Vikas Bendke

Mr Manohar Sapre

Dr Sanjay Deshmukh

Dr Anand Tendulkar

Mr Shilpesh Gambhire

Mr R.S. Varma

Mr Vibhakar Kelkar

Mr Himanshu Tulpule

Mr Kanwarjit Nagi

Mr Milind Thakur

Mr Madan Samant

Ms Preetam Dhupkar

Mr Uday Varavadekar

Ms Shrutika Bhawkar

Mr Rahul Pendurkar

Mr Prashant Karane

Mr Rohan Desai

Mr Ketan Tendulkar

Mr Rajan Pawar

Mr Chandrakant Sahil

Mr Dilip Sawant

Mr Rajan Bobhate

Mr Rajesh Masurkar

Ms Aruna Telli

Mr Pravin Teli

Mr Mahesh Rane

Ms Snehalata Malvankar

Mr Subrato Sarkar

Mr Ulhas Talwar

Mr Shankar Ghare

Mr Sanjay Deb Barma

Mr Nilesh Dhuri

Mr Sudan Rudrapal

Mr Satesh Haldankar

Mr Sham Mestri

Mr Anand Dalvi

Mr Dipu Deb Barma

Mr Gajendra Sawant

The work on which this publication is based was made possible by the following staff of KONBAC and several individuals from the community.

The considerable support of Mr Arun Kumar, Mr Oliver Frith and Ms K. Rathna is gratefully acknowledged.

AcronymsARS : Action Research SiteBPL : Below poverty lineCFC : Common Facility CentreCIBART : Centre for Indian Bamboo Resource and TechnologyDC(H) : Development Commissioner (Handicrafts)DRDA : District Rural Development AgencyDUDA : District Urban Development AgencyFWWB : Friends of Women’s World BankingIFAD : International Fund for Agricultural DevelopmentINBAR : International Network for Bamboo and RattanINR : Indian RupeeIIT : Indian Institute of TechnologyISO : International Organization for StandardizationJSS : Jan Shikshan SansthanKONBAC : Konkan Bamboo and Cane Development CentreKONIM : Konkan Nisarg ManchMITCON : Maharashtra Industrial & Technical Development OrganizationMTDC : Maharashtra Tourism Development CorporationMSME : Ministry of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises NABARD : National Bank for Agriculture and Rural DevelopmentNBM : National Bamboo MissionNGO : Non-government organizationNID : National Institute of DesignNMBA : National Mission on Bamboo ApplicationsOBC : Other backward classesPPP : Public-Private PartnershipsSC : Scheduled castesST : Scheduled tribesSHGs : Self-help groupsTRIBAC : Tripura Bamboo and Cane Development CentreUBFDB : Uttaranchal Bamboo and Fibre Development BoardUNDP : United Nations Development ProgrammeUSD : United States Dollar

Currency exchange rate used in this document: USD 1 = INR 45

Acknowledgements 3

Acronyms 4

Summary 7

I. Setting the Stage 11

II. Human and Social Capital Development 19

III. Natural Capital Development 29

IV. Furniture Enterprise Unit 35

V. Craft Enterprise Unit 41

VI. Packaging Enterprise Unit 47

VII. Construction Enterprise Unit 51

VIII. Sanitary Napkins Enterprise Unit 57

IX. Financial Capital Development 59

X. Taking Stock and the Way Ahead 63

contents

7Breaking Barriers and Creating Capital

summAry

In 2003, an action research-based development programme using local bamboos for benefitting poor rural communities in the Konkan Division in Maharashtra State, India, was set up by INBAR in partnership with CIBART. This publication describes how the initiatives at the Konkan Action Research Site (ARS) first seeded and then nurtured growth. It analyses how the strategies have resulted in quantitatively and qualitatively enhanced rural livelihoods, while addressing local, cross-cutting social and economic challenges, such as dependence on rain-fed agriculture, male urban migration, caste prejudices and low market demand. The work done by KONBAC, CIBART and INBAR resulted in the following key achievements:

• Institutional ecosystem development: Starting with the establishment of KONBAC, a dedicated NGO for this purpose, the supporting institutional ecosystem needed for sustained and viable economic activity was incrementally built up with nursery linkages, a processing centre, a preservation unit, and enterprise units for crafts, packaging, furniture, construction and sanitary pads. Resource and input supply chains linking growers to processers, and value chains linking rural processers and rural enterprises to markets were developed. The Konkan ARS now links 130 villages and 3,000 households.

• Capacity development: Training programmes with different reach and depth were developed. These ranged from short-term to long-term programmes for imparting basic skills, skills upgrading and raising awareness. By 2008, with support from DRDA and other institutions, the ARS had trained 2,783 (2,638 women and 145 men) and with support from NBM, the ARS had raised awareness of an additional 3,200 individuals. Significantly, with changing perceptions, the number of participants on training courses has risen significantly over 2005, with increasing representation from across the caste system. Training and awareness programmes have also been undertaken on bamboo propagation, management and its use.

• Resource enhancement: Through the ARS programme, INBAR and local partners have promoted development of bamboo plantations and homesteads, with close to 50,000 bamboo plants and planting material made available by Social Forestry Department, Kudal, Sindhudurg district. In 2007, linkages were also established with one of the largest private nurseries in the state, Shailesh Nursery in Kohlapur district, to produce more than 150,000 plants per year. The technical knowledge needed to produce bamboo plants was provided to the nursery. A total of 217,500 plants were produced between 2005 and 2008. KONBAC has also developed a bamboo supply chain, ensuring that bamboo farmers are able to supply raw materials directly to ARS

8 Breaking Barriers and Creating Capital

work units and community enterprises at fair prices.

• Accesstonewmarkets: The ARS has provided rural communities, who account for almost 90 percent of the population in Sindhudurg and Ratnagiri districts and often live below the poverty line, with opportunities to access high-value urban markets in nearby Mumbai and Goa. This has been achieved through promotion of off-farm bamboo sectors, such as furniture-making, handicrafts and construction. Traditionally, ARS beneficiaries have depended heavily on rain-fed crops, such as paddy. Horticulture crops like cashew and mango are easily affected by abnormal weather. These crops provide unstable returns and limited working opportunities throughout the year. However, through the development of furniture, handicraft and construction units, the ARS has been able to generate commercial sales of USD 308,000 over four years.

• Removal of caste barriers: The ARS has played a major role in lowering local caste barriers. Traditionally, bamboo artisanship was solely an occupation of the Mahar caste which is classified by government as a scheduled caste. Furthermore, many members of the Mahar caste were dissuading their children from learning bamboo processing and weaving skills owing to the low caste association of bamboo and declining income of traditional bamboo products due to emergence of lower-priced substitutes. The ARS programme has altered social perceptions of bamboo by demonstrating its economic potential in new, high-value markets. Because of the interventions, large numbers of Mahar community, as well as members of other castes – such as Sutar (carpenters), Vani (traders) and Gabit (fisherfolk) – are now working together in the local bamboo sector. In addition, some higher caste Maratha and Brahmin members are also engaging in the sector.

• Empowermentofwomen: The ARS has empowered local women, who make up two-thirds of the working population due to male urban migration to the cities.1 Over 467 women have been provided with opportunities to diversify into higher value-added roles in furniture, mat-weaving, crafts, construction and sanitary pads production, while working in safer work environs. Significantly, these women are able to work from home, or as part of KONBAC work units, which enables them to earn a stable income, tend to children and take care of other farm work while expanding their social networks.

• Employmentgenerationandenhancement:The Konkan ARS has generated over 672 new rural livelihoods; 467 of them are for women and 205 are for men. All of them are KONBAC trainees. At least one member each from 3,000 households out of the 15,000 poor and socially backward bamboo artisan households has attended an awareness raising or training workshop. Many of them have also increased their individual incomes, given that bamboo product production and sale are their traditional livelihoods.

• Incomegeneration:The average monthly income of women and men beneficiaries was INR 3,000 (USD 66.70) if full-time, and INR 500-750 (USD 11.10–16.70) if part-

1According to the 2001 census, 12.7 million women work in the region, with 89 percent relying on agriculture


time, except in the furniture unit where the full-time income was INR 3,500 (USD 77.80). A few full-time workers could earn INR 4,000 (USD 88.90). Many of them were first-time earners.

• Reduced male urban migration: By promoting higher-value bamboo industries and the demonstration of a steady and growing market demand, the Konkan ARS has helped reduce urban migration among male youth which, due to the current option of only seasonal employment in agriculture, is very high. For example, through establishment of construction and furniture units, which have a majority of men, KONBAC has provided year-round employment to 189 men who might have otherwise migrated.

• Increased institutional linkages: In addition to direct impacts on the local communities, the ARS has played a prominent role in raising awareness among government, banks and private enterprise about the economic and poverty alleviation potential of the bamboo sector. For example, government agencies such as NMBA and NBM now view the Konkan ARS as a centre for innovation and work intensively with KONBAC on a range of public training and commercial activities. Furthermore, the ARS has set up a PPP with the Lavasa Corporation, which is establishing India’s largest hill city, emphasizing on the use of eco-friendly methods and materials. Lavasa is employing local community members who had been trained by KONBAC in bamboo-based construction and furniture work.

Through ten chapters, this publication narrates how the ARS programme has accomplished the above and improved the lives of the rural poor. In Chapter I, the local/regional context, the need for development intervention, and the logic for a bamboo-based approach are explained. The majority of rural residents in the Konkan depend on a single, rain-fed, short agriculture season, and lack of year-round employment opportunities is a major cause of poverty. This leads to seasonal migration of males. This poverty is compounded by erratic monsoon seasons and unstable agricultural markets for traditional products. In contrast, bamboo, which can be harvested throughout the year and is used in a number of off-farm industries, offers a vital alternative source of year-round income. Background history on the institutional context and how and why the ARS institutional eco-system was established are explained. This will highlight the importance of developing a system that is driven by local demand and markets.

Chapter II covers the human and social capital development of the Konkan ARS. The programme has incrementally changed social perceptions of bamboo as a low-cost material. To promote such changes, the ARS programme has relied significantly on training and capacity building courses for local beneficiaries. Finally, issues of gender and the empowerment of local women are addressed. Given that women comprise two-thirds of the district’s resident population (since the men migrate out to the cities), the generation of employment and income-earning opportunities for women has played a major role in the ARS programme.

In Chapter III, interventions in natural capital development are analysed. Konkan has rich bamboo resources, with 14,000 ha of bamboo available in Sindhudurg district alone. However, before the ARS programme was established, this resource base was poorly


managed and utilized. In this chapter, efforts made to improve bamboo stocks and biodiversity, as well as bamboo supply chains and payment for farmers, are described.

Chapters IV-VIII examine in more detail the furniture, packaging, craft, construction and sanitary napkin enterprise units established under the ARS. These units provide community members with access to training and equipment. With the exception of the sanitary napkin unit, which is a pilot demonstration, all of these make commercial sales. Each chapter analyses how one of these units are helping to promote uptake of bamboo-based livelihoods and community enterprises.

In Chapter IX, financial capital development is assessed. At present, the Konkan ARS has made considerable progress in developing into a self-sustaining institutional system. Current financial needs and future solutions for these needs are reviewed.

The final Chapter X provides insights into potential future research and impacts of the programme. For home micro-enterprises, of the men and women trained, 140 men and 445 women got into business, which works out to a conversion rate of 96.6 percent for men and 16.9 percent for women. A study to understand and mitigate/overcome possible barriers to entrepreneurship by rural women might help in understanding the underlying causes better and in equaling the ratios of success.

It is telling that Konkan women clearly prefer home micro-enterprises (of the 585 women and men who set up business, 76.1% are women as compared to 23.9% of men). Women are thus not setting up enterprises to the same extent as men but prefer home businesses. This might be due to the logic of women+home+children, social or other causes that needs further study.

Of the 672 new livelihoods generated, 12.9 percent are in urban KONBAC enterprise units whereas 87.1 percent are self-employed in household micro-enterprises in the villages. This means that one average urban job in the units in Kudal town is generating 6.7 rural jobs in the villages. While the number of rural jobs in crafts was 93.5 percent compared to 6.5 percent urban jobs, a surprising result was that the construction unit generated a nearly equal benefit with 90.0 percent rural jobs to 9.1 percent urban jobs, which was unexpected. It would be interesting to compare bamboo construction with conventional construction methods in terms of rural benefit. The furniture unit generated a majority of 66.2 percent rural jobs as compared to 33.8 percent urban jobs.

In comparison to employment, the overall rural-urban income distribution is more balanced with 54.7 percent in rural areas and 45.3 percent in urban areas. Given that there are a much higher number of people employed in rural areas, the net earnings of a person working in rural areas is thus much lower than that of an urban employed person.

The Konkan ARS, which is a partnership of INBAR, CIBART and KONBAC, is a showcase development model of how a sustainable and viable economic system using local bamboo and human resources can be developed. It is likely to have significant relevance for development in other places where bamboo and poor rural people co-exist, in India and abroad.

I. settIng the stAge


Target Region and Project Area

The Konkan Action Research Site (ARS), which was set up in 2004 by the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR), is centred in the Sindhudurg district of the Konkan division. Over time, the ARS has come to include parts of the neighbouring Ratnagiri district too. More recently, activities have been extended to Kolhapur district of Pune division and the adjacent state of Goa.

Figure1:The Konkan Division, Maharashtra, India

The Konkan division is one of the six divisions in Maharashtra, India, comprising an area of 30,746 sq. km and a population of about 25 million (2001). It lies between the Arabian Sea and the Sahyadri mountain range of the Western Ghats, encompassing the narrow coastal lowland, which is barely 60 km wide and 600 km long (Figure 1). Sindhudurg is mostly rural with roughly 90 percent of its 868,000 population living in rural areas; Ratnagiri comes a close second with 88 percent of people being rural. Kolhapur, which abuts Sindhudurg, is relatively urbanized with 70 percent of its population living in rural areas.

Despite being on the Goa–Mumbai axis comprising a key tourist centre and the commercial capital of India, there is significant poverty in the Konkan division, with 51.2 percent in Sindhudurg and 32.5 percent in Ratnagiri (Table 1) living below the poverty line. An important reason for this is that the Konkan division is predominantly rural and the


economy is largely agro-based. Most cultivators are smallholders. Agriculture is heavily dependent on monsoon rains over four months (June-September), leaving the rural population vulnerable to fluctuating incomes. The area is rather dry in the hot summer that precedes the rains with temperatures soaring up to 34ºC. During the succeeding autumn and light winter, temperatures go down to 17ºC. Therefore, about two-thirds of the year are not conducive to agriculture. An estimated 160 days of seasonal employment are available in the region with the paddy production and mango crop being harvested once annually.

Table1:Some key indicators

ParticularsOperational Districts2

Ratnagiri Sindhudurg Kolhapur

No. of Blocks 9 8 12

No. of villages 1,553 752 1,230

HDI 20003 0.44 0.6 0.64

Population as per 2001 census 1,696,777 868,825 3,523,162

No. of households 377,366 192,666 712,349

No. of families below poverty line 122,725 98,696 71,709

Geographical area (sq. km) 8,326 5,207 8,200

Forest area (sq. km) 67 910 1,400

Per capita income (value 2003-04)INR 14,064

(USD 312.53)INR 15,812

(USD 351.40)INR16,832

(USD 374.00)

Owing to seasonal agricultural patterns, earning during the fallow season to supplement income is important. Therefore, most men work as seasonal migrant labour in Mumbai and other industrial areas. This results in leaving behind the women, who make up about two-thirds of the labour force in rural Konkan. These women work predominantly as marginal labourers to supplement family incomes. According to the 2001 Census, of the 12.7 million women working in the rural areas of Konkan, 11.3 million (89 percent) were employed in agriculture, with 41 percent as cultivators and 48 percent as agricultural labour. A small number of women work in household industries and other non-farm occupations.

2Data based on Planning Commission Report on 10th Five Year Plan and Census 2001

3Government of Maharashtra (2002) Human Development Report for Maharashtra 2002

Figure2: Kudal: KONBAC Headquarters


Bamboo as an entry point for development

The region has fairly dense patches of bamboos such as Oxytenanthera stocksii, O. monostigma, Bambusa bambos and Dendrocalamus strictus. Bamboo is available both in forests and homesteads in the Konkan region. Growing bamboo in homesteads is a tradition with nearly 60 percent of farmers having a minimum of 5 to 10 clumps of O. stocksii, which is the bamboo most in demand. This is largely used for roofing of temporary sheds for storage on the farm, making utility items like baskets, and for handicrafts. At present, B. bambos is grown in small quantity with limited uses, such as for fencing and vertical supports of temporary structures. The availability of bamboo offers many opportunities to address rural poverty in the Konkan and surrounding regions.

Bamboo is a unique natural resource. It is woody, fast-growing and yields annually. Bamboo is a versatile material and has the advantage of creating large-scale employment in rural areas. By nature, bamboo processing activities are labour-intensive. Bamboo lends itself easily to processing. Unlike wood, it can be easily split and slivered with hand tools. Processing slivers into products such as incense sticks, mats and crafts is relatively simple. Bamboo has the ability to replace wood in many applications, ranging from furniture, flooring and housing to infrastructure. Furthermore, bamboo is used as food (shoots and seeds) and for paper manufacture.

Bamboo has a strong relationship with rural communities, allowing them to participate in a larger proportion of value addition compared with other resources and industrial processes. As bamboo production includes multiple phases of management and processing, it provides livelihood options in various areas to a larger number of rural workers. Benefits of bamboo can be capitalized upon to promote poverty alleviation through creating self or wage employment, increasing income and protecting the environment. The development of bamboo-based craft and industry requires relatively low capital, raw material, tools and machinery investments in comparison with other handicraft activities. Because of this, it is possible to address economic, cultural, social and ecological issues in bamboo development through sustainable approaches.

The handicrafts sector, which provides employment to 23 million in India, stands as the second largest source of employment after agriculture. A significant part of it is bamboo-based. Many of the bamboo crafts reflect the close, almost mystic, relationship of bamboo, people and culture. Ingenious skills revolve around slivering, interlacing (“weaving”), stitching, splitting, layering, inserting, winding, stringing and pinning to create products for a thousand applications. Rural communities employ bamboo extensively for their day-to-day uses like fencing, energy, housing and household utilitarian and agricultural implements.

In Konkan region, the traditional artisans – mainly the Mahar community (Burud in other regions) who are in Sindhudurg and surrounding districts are well versed in primary processing of bamboo poles and producing interlaced (“woven”) articles. They constitute an estimated 15,000 bamboo artisan families in Konkan region. Most of them comprise the marginalized social classes, namely the Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST),4 who make up about 2.5 to 13.3 percent of the population in the region – 1.8


percent and 0.9 percent in Ratnagiri, 5.1 percent and 0.5 percent in Sindhudurg, and 26.4 percent and 13.0 percent in Kolhapur, respectively.

The traditional bamboo working communities of the Konkan region cater to the local market and produce a set of traditional utilitarian products which have not changed for long. The widespread use of plastic material, which is cheaper, colourful and durable, had reduced the use of bamboo products and thereby their demand. A strong perception had been built up that bamboo could not be converted into products that have adequate demand and remunerative value in markets. As a result, the Mahars – traditional bamboo-working community – was forced to take up new occupations alongside their traditional occupation. Since working with bamboo is also an indicator of low caste, many Mahar artisans have given up this profession altogether to be rid of the stigma attached to it. As neither the Mahar elders nor the children see any value in their traditional artisan knowledge and skills, bamboo artisanal skills are no longer being passed down to younger Mahar generations. Many have switched to working in farms as labourers. More than 90 percent of the Mahars do not own agricultural land and hence have to earn their food (received as part-payment for farm labour) and income from farm labour. However, farm labour provides only a meagre income, from the seasonal employment of up to 160 days per year, which is inadequate to provide for the entire year.

Figure3: Traditional bamboo weaving community members processing bamboo

4‘Scheduled Castes’ are indigenous Indian communities who were excluded from the caste system – the social superstructure of Hindu (even Indian) society. These communities, especially Scheduled castes, were relegated to menial labour with no possibility of upward mobility, lacking opportunities for educational, social and economic growth. To remedy this, the Government of India Act of 1935 prepared two lists (schedules) of these communities, and accorded preferential treatment for raising their socio-economic status. These lists, with modifications, were later appended to the Indian Constitution.


Need for Development Intervention

Before INBAR’s intervention in Konkan, attempts had been made to develop the local bamboo sector. In 2000, a local NGO called Kokan Nisarga Manch (KONIM) was set up by a group of concerned professionals interested in the development of the Konkan region, with a focus on local resources such as bamboo, kokam (Garcinia indica) and medicinal plants. With the support of the Forest Research Institute (FRI), Dehradun, a survey of available bamboo resources was undertaken. A book on investment opportunities in bamboo was published and circulated among leading industrialists interested in the region. Despite these efforts, there were no investors in the bamboo sector. In the same year, KONIM approached the National Institute of Design (NID) to develop bamboo-based packaging for mangoes, a principal crop of the region. However, the prototype did not meet with the technical and performance criteria of the mango industry.

In 2001-2002, INBAR undertook a consultancy supported by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), Government of India, on the potential for housing development using bamboo. One of the sites studied was the Konkan, and this gave INBAR its first introduction to the region. During discussions, farmers stated to the INBAR team that growing bamboo gave higher economic returns than mango (an export item), coconut or rice. The other attraction of bamboo to farmers was that it was a “plant-once-and-forget” resource, which did not need constant attention to produce poles annually. Farmers did not even have to cut the bamboo since interested parties, mainly traders, would cut and transport the bamboo themselves. The farmers were thus eager to plant bamboo and asked INBAR to assist in making available planting material that they were ready to buy.

INBAR knew that the income generating and employment opportunities possible with bamboo in the region are considerable. On the one hand, there was the prevalence of a traditional bamboo working community in the Konkan and their bamboo processing skills were strong; on the other hand, however, the bamboo community itself was writing off its traditional profession and not passing down its bamboo-working skills to the younger generations. There was another and possibly more serious challenge. The “low caste” association of bamboo was so strong in the minds of people that there was danger it could limit wider adoption of bamboo-based employment. Traditionally, those not belonging to the bamboo artisanal castes would not even want to be seen working with bamboo, since it was regarded as a product produced only by the scheduled caste Mahar/Burud communities and therefore an identifier of such castes (which constitute about 2.5 to 13.3 percent of the population in the project area).

Other challenges were to create forward linkages into the market, besides the backward linkages into the communities. In addition, the development of institutional support facilities – such as vocational programmes, technical facilities and marketing support, which will help in furthering employment and income generation, was needed. Technology upgrading and modernization to improve productivity, quality and cost-effectiveness was another imperative.

INBAR applied to the International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD) for funding that could be deployed to make a difference in the region, while generating strategies and


knowledge that could be applied elsewhere. Coincidentally, in March 2004, INBAR was invited back to the region by the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) to help initiate development activities in the region using bamboo as the main resource.

Discussions were held with local NGOs, communities, government departments, technical institutions and banks. The findings that were presented to a stakeholder group pointed out: (a) the strong low caste association of bamboo as the main obstacle to bamboo development; (b) limited supply of treated and graded bamboo in the market; (c) non-availability of trained workforce; (d) lack of processing facilities; (e) the need for developing and designing new products that would cater to the market needs; and (f) lack of a supporting technically capable institutional set-up. Following discussions, INBAR agreed to support a project, provided there was corresponding investment from other sources. This was agreed to and thus INBAR initiated the Konkan ARS with the aim of addressing these shortcomings. Initially, INBAR provided USD 10,000 as seed funding for the ARS from IFAD grant funds to the Centre for Indian Bamboo Resource and Technology (CIBART),5 INBAR’s partner in India.

In June 2004, CIBART established a non-profit NGO, the Konkan Bamboo and Cane Development Centre (KONBAC) dedicated to bamboo and cane development in the Konkan region. In June 2004, a grant of USD 100,000 for a Common Facility Centre (CFC) was sanctioned to CIBART by the Office of the Development Commissioner for Handicrafts [DC(H)] of the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India. This was made possible through the technical and policy support of INBAR. The CFC became operational in January 2005. A one acre plot of land was leased for future development, with an emphasis on establishing infrastructure needed for concerted bamboo-based economic activities.

KONBAC was established as a not-for-profit Section 25 company.6 The company format was chosen, as it allows for proportional ownership among different stakeholders, which can be changed over time. The structure allows for inputs from multiple actors, promoting institutional innovations. For example, part of the ownership can come from the community, while another part can come from professionals who bring technical, social and other expertise. The aim is to incrementally devolve ownership to the community while retaining part of it with CIBART. Such devolution has been done in Tripura Bamboo and Cane Development Centre (TRIBAC), which is another daughter organization of CIBART. KONBAC, at present, is fully owned by CIBART, and devolution will be undertaken when the organization is free of debt. The aim is to transfer majority ownership to institutionalized community groups or federations of self-help groups (SHGs), since individual membership would bar the deriving of income in a Section 25 company, as per the Indian Companies Act.

The role of KONBAC was to take forward the ARS programme in the Konkan division and utilize the available bamboo resources to help bamboo working communities derive greater economic returns from bamboo, expand its use by others by trying to overcome the caste and social prejudices, and generate employment and income through the setting up of bamboo-based enterprises.

5CIBART is a national-level technical NGO and INBAR’s partner organization whose establishment was facilitated by INBAR

6Under Indian Companies Act, 1956.


Building an Institutional Ecosystem to Support Development

To obtain economic success, several institutions and systems are needed to work in tandem. The success of the Konkan ARS has happened because such a supporting institutional ecosystem was developed. An important aspect is the early focus on institutional development, and policy support from INBAR and institutional support from CIBART. It is noteworthy that while KONBAC is a local NGO at the district level, it has institutional linkages to its parent body, CIBART, at the national level and through it to INBAR at the international level. This enables KONBAC to access technical and policy support at different levels, as well as the other institutional and support systems being put into place, and leverage the CIBART and INBAR brands and goodwill. For example, INBAR policy support enabled CIBART to secure approval from the DC(H) for about USD 100,000 funding for a Common Facility Centre (CFC) for bamboo processing for the communities in the Konkan; the CFC was set up in Kudal and is being operated by KONBAC. INBAR and CIBART have also provided considerable in-kind support in terms of making available the time and input of their staff including supporting their travel to the Konkan ARS.

Thus, the INBAR intervention through ARS helped in setting up the basic institutional support and leveraging some government-level support required to kick-start bamboo-based development in the Konkan region. Several product units were set up, which as they grew, were physically separated into enterprise unit. An R&D and technology development centre is being set up to support the enterprise units. A social enterprise, NATIVE Konbac Bamboo Products Pvt. Ltd. has been set up to secure the needed social investment and credit.

II. humAn And socIAl cApItAl development


Bamboo offers diverse income generating and employment opportunities. In the Konkan, the main obstacle is the “low caste” association that bamboo has in the minds of people. In the past, this has limited the adoption of bamboo work by other communities, who would not want to be seen working with a material that only low caste communities worked with. Overcoming the caste barrier and the association of caste with bamboo was thus of paramount importance to the Konkan ARS programme if any development using bamboo was to be possible at all. The silver lining was that there was no barrier to consumption, as all castes bought and utilized bamboo products.

The strategy developed, initially informally and later formally articulated, was to first target the bamboo-working castes and incrementally change their declining interest in bamboo. The second element in the strategy was to raise the profile of bamboo by improving product designs and positioning bamboo products in high-end markets. The third element was to change the profile (and perceived status) of the production process from being just a home-based handicraft to an industrialized craft production system (which also ensures standardized quality products and helps increase economic returns from the sector). Importantly, this strategy, along with the community training methodology adopted, is replicable and has scalable implications for other projects that may have similar objectives and contexts.

Instilling Interest in Youth

KONBAC, with support from the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA), began community training programmes in early 2005. The community participants were selected by DRDA based on an assessment by the government’s extension officer and the village development officer (Gram Sevak).

Initially, the people were not interested in bamboo and therefore unwilling to participate in bamboo training programmes. For the first four months, KONBAC was unable to find anyone willing to be trained despite getting DRDA-sanctioned programmes to train unemployed youth. DRDA was thus forced to sanction training courses for the elderly to meet its training quotas. The result was that instead of training unemployed youth and young adults (18-35 years old) to work with bamboo for gainful employment as envisaged, the average age of the initial sets of trainees in 2005 was around 60-75 years, with 421 of the total 502 trainees aged above 50 (Figure 4).

The elders participated because of their traditional skills in bamboo product making, which they used as a source of livelihood all through the years. They were willing to learn about improved designs and upgrading their skills, but were very reluctant to send their children for training in bamboo processing since they did not see any future in it. The market for traditional bamboo products was on the decline with increasing competition from imported products and plastics. Also, by the very act of working with bamboo, their children would be identified by the society as belonging to a lower caste. Hence, rather than passing on their skills in bamboo weaving to their children and encouraging them to participate in trainings, the older participating women asked KONBAC to help secure other jobs for their children. People belonging to other castes, even if poor, were simply not interested in the training opportunities for similar social reasons.


Faced with this situation, and rather than trying to bring the people to the training courses, KONBAC decided to take a trainer to the community and do production in public. The reasoning was that this would enable not only older people (who were participating in training courses), but also younger age groups (who were not participating) to see what could be done with bamboo: curiosity might prevail over established reluctance.

An expert trainer-artisan, sourced from Orissa, India, was brought in and a house leased within a Mahar community hamlet. The trainer was asked to stay there for four months and make products in full view of the community. In time, the high quality and new diversity of products being made started attracting people, some of whom wanted to learn from him.

Figure4: Participation of older women in trainings

Initially, they were interested in individual processes and then whole products. The trainer was asked to focus on the younger people and get them interested. While only a few youth came forward initially, the situation changed during Diwali, the Festival of Lights, when the trainer produced an elegantly crafted lantern. The new-design lantern was produced in larger numbers by the now-interested communities to meet the demand and sold at record prices of INR 150 (USD 3.30) per piece compared with the prices of around INR 50 (USD 1.10) for a lantern of traditional design. This highlighted the prospect for higher remuneration from new, well-designed and well-produced bamboo products, and the members of the community realized that their traditional craft still had a future. They understood that the consumers were tired of the usual range of products and are interested in innovative designs even if they are higher priced.


To further this nascent interest in the youth, KONBAC offered them the opportunity to be trained in the CFC, making and marketing products that fetched good earnings. The original modality prescribed by the DC(H) to run the CFC as a processing centre with charges paid by users for processing was widened, and it was positioned as a “factory” in which people would have “jobs”. The combination of “factory” with “jobs” proved very attractive to the rural youth since it added glamour and status to their lives. The increasing income benefits and rise in social status of those already employed had a

cascading effect, and with time, more youth started asking to be trained in bamboo processing. Thus, from 2006 onwards, the number of youth participating in training programmes has shown a steady increase (Figure 5).

A total of 2,783 people have been trained on a range of products and applications to date – from crafts to construction with bamboo. Women constituted the large majority with 2,638 trainees (Figure 6). Bamboo offered the possibility of working from their home utilizing the spare time from household activities. Women in the region were in need of viable off-farm employment opportunities due to rampant migration of men.

The demand for training also went up with a direct impact on DRDA’s training portfolio. As previously mentioned, DRDA could not find enough trainees to fill the sanctioned training programmes for Sindhudurg district and was forced to take on older people to meet government training targets. The approach and strategy of KONBAC turned the situation around, and DRDA was able to focus on youth (18-35 years old) in the training programmes as per its mandate. In addition, from a situation where it was not able to spend the allotted training funds, DRDA was able to ensure 100 percent funds utilization. The demand for the training is now so high that DRDA is forced to carry over some of the training programmes to the following year.

Figure5: Age-wise classification of trainees

Figure6: Total number of women and men trained


Figure7: Participation of young women in skill development training

Increasing Interest

After KONBAC changed its strategy on training, the situation changed dramatically. Each course attracted more than the stipulated number. Till December 2008, KONBAC has conducted 127 training programmes involving 2,783 individuals and out of this, 1837 (66 percent) were below the poverty line (Table 2). Of the 127 training courses conducted, the majority were short term lasting less than a week and the rest were medium to long term courses lasting up to 1-3 months.

Table2: Training courses undertaken by KONBAC

Year Totalpartici-pants

2days

5days

6-8days

15days

20-21

days

30days

60days

90days

Total no.of

trainings

2005 502 17 2 1 2 2 24

2006 1202 1 38 9 2 1 2 53

2007 697 6 8 2 12 2 2 1 33

2008 382 7 4 5 1 0 17

Total 2783 7 70 4 25 7 4 7 3 127


Community members were trained on making a range of products, including industrial crafts, furniture, construction, mats (for construction), etc. and on resource regeneration. Majority of the training courses are in making industrial crafts and cases for packaging, where more trained people are needed due to the larger volumes of production. Courses are also undertaken in furniture making and construction, which need fewer trained people, being low in production volume though higher in value (Table 3).

Table3: Training courses offered and their duration

No of days Number of trainees

Training course

2 days 20 Skill upgrading

5 days 17-35 Skill upgrading on crafts, mango packaging

6-8 days 20 Skill upgrading on crafts, mango packaging

15 days 18-27 Training on bamboo craft, mango packaging, skill upgrading

20-21 days 20-22 Training on bamboo craft skill upgrading

30 days 15-20 Training on bamboo furniture making, bread (roti) basket making and construction

60 days 15-20 Training on bamboo construction, furniture making

90 days 18-20 Skill upgrading at an advanced level to a pool of artisans

The decline in the number of trainings and the number of people being trained in 2008 (Table 2) despite the continuing demand from those interesting in undergoing training (and the continuing push from the government to undertake trainings) was due to the need to balance this with the creation of employment opportunities in order to sustain the interest of the youth and not get them disillusioned. While KONBAC could employ some in its enterprises, and some trainees started their own production units, a number of trainees are still unemployed.

Overcoming Caste Barriers

Interestingly, the attraction of working in a factory, having a job and the growing “status” of bamboo has started attracting other castes, including the OBCs (Other Backward Castes) such as Sutar (carpenters), Vani (traders) and Gabit (fisherfolk). Some individuals from forward castes – Maratha and Brahmin – have also joined in (Figure 8). Various castes now work together, learning from each other and helping each other. This can be evidenced from the representation of members from various castes working in KONBAC.


Figure8: Caste representation of people working at KONBAC

Thus, KONBAC’s work is helping to break down traditional caste barriers, at least in work and at the workplace, and thus contributing to building local social capital. This has been a breakthrough and is replicable in many developmental efforts in India, where caste-based affiliations in vocations are strong and can negatively affect developmental efforts.

Building Local Capacity

The building of local trainer capacity has been another major impact of the ARS programme’s capacity building initiatives. At the start of the programme in 2005, trainers were hired from the North-Eastern states, which have a rich culture of bamboo craft and weaving. However, within three years, people trained locally had fine-tuned their skills and become expert trainers, thus replacing those sourced from outside the region. This increase in local capacity has helped the programme upscale its training programmes considerably year on year (Table 4). Furthermore, the number and the range of agencies coming forward to sponsor training programmes in the Konkan region has been increasing year on year due to the development of local trainers and the popularity of community training course (please see Chapter IX).

Table4:Number of trainers

Year Total trainers From outside Local

2005 8 8 0

2006 12 5 7

2007 12 2 10

2008 10 0 10

KONBAC has absorbed 84 trainees on full-time basis in various units that it operates. In addition, 672 trainees are working in their own household micro-enterprises on part-time, piece-rate basis. Others have separately cashed in on the growing recognition and the brand image of KONBAC, with five setting up independent enterprises employing 3 to 5 persons under them, with two furniture-making and three crafts-making enterprises.


Earlier they were working in KONBAC units and were receiving a remuneration of INR 2,500 (USD 55.60) per month and now they earn more than double this amount through their independent enterprises.

Outreach

The growing demand for KONBAC’s training programmes has resulted in the expansion of its activities to new regions and communities. While initially in 2004-2005, the training programmes were concentrated in and around Kudal in 18 villages within a range of 8 to 10 kilometres; by 2008 these had extended to over 130 villages at distances of 90-95 kilometres from Kudal (Figure 9). The more recent training programmes are being attended by the government officers, farmers, SHG members, artisans and local elected representatives.

With growing recognition of KONBAC as a technical resource centre, other agencies are requesting it to organize specific training programmes for technical personnel. A week-long training programme was conducted for the National Bamboo Mission (NBM) field functionaries on plantation, preservation and utilization of bamboo, and nursery development and awareness-raising. NBM had also sent to KONBAC a group of farmers and artisans to be trained for a week on bamboo-based development opportunities. An International Enterprise Training Course was organized by INBAR and KONBAC in February 2007 in the Konkan ARS for fourteen participants. KONBAC organized a “Whole Culm Bamboo Construction” training course in October 2007 for 10 participants, including six from East Timor and one from Italy. In 2008, with support from NBM, KONBAC organized 16 awareness programmes in 16 districts for two days, which were attended by over 3,200 community members. The intent behind these programmes was to make community members across the state of Maharashtra aware of the livelihood opportunities possible with bamboo and to instil interest in them to see bamboo as a viable economic opportunity. The Konkan ARS is thus becoming a knowledge centre for best practices on bamboo resource management and processing.

Support Received for Capacity Building

KONBAC has been regularly receiving training grants from a host of organizations since the year 2005 (Table 10). It conducted 127 training programmes on skills upgrading in bamboo product development, awareness programmes on the potential of bamboo, and bamboo propagation and management. Revenue generated in 2005 was INR 235,755 (USD 5,239), which increased to INR 1,786,876 (USD 39,708) in 2008 – more than seven times the revenue generated in the first year. Between 2005 and 2008, grants received for trainings alone amounted to INR 3,793,480 (USD 84,300).

A progressive trend can be seen in terms of capacity building grants (Table 5). This reflects the confidence of various donors in the programme delivery mechanisms and outputs of KONBAC. Of the total number of trainings, DRDA has sanctioned the maximum number of training programmes, with 72 of them, totalling a grant value of INR 946,552 (USD 21,000). In terms of value, NABARD is the second largest donor for trainings, followed by MITCON.


In 2008, with NBM’s grant support, KONBAC organized 16 awareness programmes with financial support of INR 1,200,000 (USD 26,500) and four programmes for farmers on “Plant Propagation and Management” supported by NBM and four orientation programmes on bamboo for government officials. More recently, KONBAC has been approached by the private sector to provide training in promoting bamboo-related activities.

Figure9: Regional expansion of training programmes undertaken


Table5:Institutions supporting training programmes by KONBAC

Year Institutions Supporting TrainingFunds

supported (INR)

2005 • District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) Govt. of Maharashtra

• Sawantwadi Municipal Council

• 175,755

• 60,000

2006 • District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) Govt. of Maharashtra.

• National Agriculture Bank for Development (NABARD)• Maharashtra Industrial & Technical Development Organisation

(MITCON)• Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS)• OBC Corporation• Nagar Panchayat Kankanwali• Jalswarajya

• 339,684

• 68,000• 178,000

• 16,000• 45,000• 36,000• 1,800

2007 • District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) Govt. of Maharashtra

• National Agriculture Bank for Development (NABARD)• Maharashtra Industrial & Technical Development Organisation

(MITCON)• Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS)• Department of Forest, Govt. of Maharashtra • Other Backward Class Corporation (OBC)• National Mission on Bamboo Applications (NMBA), DST,

Govt. of India • Konkan Agriculture University, Dapoli, Ratnagiri• District Urban Development Agency, (DUDA)• Konkan Nisarg Manch, Kudal, Sindhudurg, Maharastra• Uttranchal Bamboo and Fibre Development Board,

Uttaranchal

• 362,162

• 120,000• 4,850

• 19,950• 74,000• 42,475• 168,000

• 30,000• 219,728• 25,200• 20,000

2008 • National Agriculture Bank for Development (NABARD)• Department of Social Forestry, Govt of Maharashtra• Joint Forest Management Committee, Sindhudurg• National Bamboo Mission, Maharastra State• District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) Govt. of

Maharastra• Mineral Foundation, Goa• Agnel Institute, Goa• Uttranchal Bamboo and Fiber Development Board • Gomukh Trust• Jalswarajya

• 114,950• 50,000• 105,000• ,284,500• 68,951

• 37,080• 64,500• 31,395• 30,000• 500

III. nAturAl cApItAl development


Bamboo is common in the Konkan region, with the agro-climatic conditions of the Konkan area, especially the districts of Sindhudurg and Ratnagiri, being ideally suited. The main species of bamboo found are Oxytenanthera stocksii, which is widely grown and used, and has the highest economic value. The poles (culms) have a small diameter (up to 5.5 cm) and grow to a medium height (up to 6 m). The poles are straight without branches at the lower level. This is suitable for craft products and for scaffolding purpose. The second most abundant bamboo is Bambusa bambos, which mostly occurs in forests. It is sometimes grown as a protective fencing due to its thorny branches. This is a large bamboo – up to 12 cm in diameter and up to 20 m tall – but the culm is hard and often crooked. It is therefore not suitable for craft products. Other bamboos are Oxytenanthera monostigma and Dendrocalamus strictus; the latter is also small in diameter but less preferred in the region than O. stocksii.

A survey by FRI has established that over 14,000 ha of bamboo are available in Sindhudurg district, some with dense clumps and others relatively scattered. KONBAC’s initiatives in the region led to a further increase in demand from farmers for planting material of O. stocksii.

Figure10: Propagation of bamboo through culm cutting

The planting material of this species is normally in short supply since its seeds are sterile. The only option left with the farmer is to do rhizome plantation; this involves the digging up of clumps to extract the rhizomes: hence, the propagule is not only expensive but also heavy. Given this situation, KONBAC organized a one-day workshop for the farmers in the region on vegetative propagation by single node method in the first year of operation itself (Figure 10). In partnership with the social forestry department


of the state government, KONBAC has helped produce large numbers of vegetatively propagated planting material from culm cuttings. At KONBAC’s initiative, the National Mission on Bamboo Applications (NMBA) provided INR 920,000 (USD 20,444) to the Social Forestry Department to produce the planting material in numbers so that farmers could get adequate planting material locally (Figure 11).

KONBAC tied up with Shailesh Nursery, which is one of the largest in the state, in Malkapur in Kholapur District in 2007 to produce over 150,000 plants per year. The needed technical knowledge was provided to the nursery for propagating O. stocksii. NMBA gave a grant to the nursery for the propagation of bamboos. In 2008, KONBAC tied up with Hex Agromarine nursery, in Murud in Raigad district to produce Melocanna baccifera and Thyrsostachys oliveri in large numbers.

Most of the planting material is taken by the larger farmers who have land. Those below the poverty line (BPL) and scheduled caste (SC) families have little or no land. Wastelands are an option, but these are mostly under the Forest Department, which sees cashew planting as a better option due to the high returns (annual harvest is auctioned). This issue needs policy intervention if the poor are to benefit from income from growing bamboo. Other options for securing land for growing bamboo for the landless include possible inter-planting in cashew growing areas and mined areas that need rehabilitation. Using such lands would also be environmentally beneficial besides offering economic advantages to the target groups.

Figure11: Bamboo nursery development activities promoted by KONBAC


After seeing the low-cost handicrafts from Tripura and other parts of North-Eastern India, KONBAC has taken steps to introduce one of the fastest growing North-Eastern species, which are best suited for crafts and furniture. In 2005, KONBAC procured Melocanna baccifera seeds from the INBAR Action Research Site in Tripura and developed a nursery, which started supplying the planting material to farmers from 2007 onwards. In 2007, KONBAC organized a workshop for farmers in the region on the techniques of plantation of M. baccifera, its management and uses. Sample seeds were distributed to 283 farmers who also saw the rapid development of just two-year old M. baccifera plants at the workshop. This prompted them to procure the plants for planting. In 2008, KONBAC introduced another species – Thyrsostachys oliveri, which is wider and longer than the species locally available in the Konkan and is well suited for furniture-making (Figure 12).

Figure12: Year-wise production of bamboo plants

Farmers in the region normally cut the bamboo in the second year of its growth. They do not let it mature, as there is demand for premature bamboo for making crafts. With the newly diversified uses of bamboo and expansion beyond craft into products such as furniture and construction uses with bamboo – mature bamboo of 3-4 years of age is needed. KONBAC has trained farmers to “read” the age from the condition of the culm. This has resulted in only mature bamboo culms, which fetch a higher price, being harvested.

When the project started (2005), the price that a farmer would receive for a bamboo pole was INR 9.00 (USD 0.20), which was then sold in the market for INR 15.00 (USD 0.30). Presently, a farmer receives INR 30.00 (USD 0.70) per pole, which is sold in the market for INR 40.00 (USD 0.90). The increase in the price is in part due to the strategic policy adopted by KONBAC, which ensures that the farmer gets a better return for their produce


while also maintaining standards in harvesting bamboo (Figure 13). It is noteworthy that over the past three years, there has been a doubling of the price difference between the buying and selling price, which is indicative of higher demand and lower supply pointing to an opportunity that existing for growers.

The demand for bamboo by KONBAC is itself high. The number of poles purchased by KONBAC has been increasing year on year, with 22,200 poles procured in 2005 steadily increasing to 23,400 in 2007 and 24,000 in 2008. The CFC at KONBAC sources its bamboo from bamboo growers, both farmers and homesteads, for its construction and furniture-making activities. For mat production done at villages, the bamboo is sourced by the communities themselves, either from homesteads or sometimes purchased from the local producers, with a pole of 20 feet costing up to INR 35.00 (USD 0.80) at present.

The CFC prefers to source its bamboo from bamboo growing farmers and homesteads instead of exploring the forest resources for the following reasons:

• To encourage farmers to produce more bamboo and to help them understand the significance of its market potential

• To ensure that the bamboo obtained is of the right age and quality• Resources available in forests are difficult to access due to complicated policy and

legal regimes• Transportation from forest areas is expensive.

About 90 percent of bamboo poles are procured from homestead farmers through middlemen who have been trained in age-reading of bamboo by KONBAC. Approximately 600 homestead farmers are presently supplying bamboo to KONBAC, the number of farmers supplying bamboo was at 150 in 2005. Earlier bamboos purchased were used mainly in training and no or low value addition happened with respect to crafts. However, with the similar number of poles, in 2008, high value addition is taking place through properly treated.

Figure13: Trend in bamboo poles purchases


KONBAC is a recognized technical advisor on sourcing planting material in the region for government institutions such as Social Forestry Department, Government of Maharashtra, Agricultural Department, Government of Maharashtra, Forest Department, Government of Goa, private nurseries and other agencies. They rely on KONBAC for technical support on plantation development, and advice on planting material procurement and propagation of different species.

Iv. FurnIture enterprIse unIt


The Konkan region has an abundance of Oxytenanthera stocksii, locally known as Mannga, with which round pole bamboo furniture of high aesthetic value can be made. Bright prospects were seen for eco-friendly round pole furniture, which would put the skills of young carpenters in the region to enhanced use. Many of them belonging to the carpenter community were reluctant to follow traditional career paths due to competition from mechanized wood furniture and increased imports of low-cost furniture and plastic furniture. Many were looking to migrate and find employment in sectors where they did not have required skills. The Konkan ARS programme tapped their skills by orienting

23 of them through training in making round pole furniture from bamboo.

After the initial training of the carpenters, five models of furniture were designed, prototyped and test-marketed in Goa and Mumbai, which are the major commercial markets of the region. The positive feedback from the market with immediate orders required a production unit for furniture making to be set up. Initially, the trained artisans were encouraged to set up the furniture unit on their own, with KONBAC promising to provide technical and marketing support, as well as assistance for accessing a bank loan. However, they were reluctant to take the risk and try out a venture that was not known and understood at that point of time. KONBAC then set up the unit by itself in January 2006 and followed through on marketing, with a set of strategic sales in the region giving bamboo round-pole furniture, sold under the brand “MANNGA EXOTIQUES” good visibility. Key clients targeted included the Shilpagram project of the Tourism Department, the Jungle resort by the Forest Department, the most famous restaurant in the district, a leading restaurant in Goa, a local restaurant in the area of operation, and well-known persons such as ministers, judges and government officials. This led to increased acceptability of bamboo products.

The furniture unit uses bamboo treated in a pressure-vacuum treatment plant (provided by NMBA) to protect against

Dattaprasad Mestry, one of the carpenters, says he is “proud to be able to use his skills to generate adequate income without moving out of the locality”. Mestry is a 26-year-old secondary school graduate who hails from a carpentry family. Driven by the lack of markets for his furniture products, he was hunting for worthwhile employment for over a year. At a time when he was on the verge of migrating and willing to take up any job that would come his way, one of KONBAC’s outreach programmes made him aware of bamboo furniture making. Soon he underwent training, which, following excellent performance, resulted in an apprenticeship at KONBAC’s furniture unit. Following completion of his apprenticeship, Mestry started his career earning USD 33 (INR 1,500) per month. Because of his excellent performance, he was chosen for a training course on joinery, jigs and moulds at the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay. He now works as a senior artisan/trainer, earning USD 89 (INR 4,000) a month, almost double the average salary of local secondary high school graduates (USD 49 = INR 2,200).


termites and borers, which helps extend the life of the furniture. The increased lifespan also changed the perception of bamboo furniture among consumers and producers. Trained artisans are given the treated bamboo in a kit form to make the needed components as per designs. Initially six artisans were hired on a full-time basis for the final assembly of the products with quality control; more were employed later.

Within a span of three years of setting up of the furniture enterprise unit, it was able to generate revenue of INR 2.73 million (USD 60,764) (Table 6; Figure 14). However, expenses to train the carpenters, and design, prototype and test-market the furniture were heavy; KONBAC incurred a net loss of INR 214,443 (USD 4,765) in 2005. The furniture unit also incurred expenses on setting up a pressure-vacuum treatment plant, with support from NMBA, and a complete facility to treat the bamboo for producing quality bamboo furniture. In 2008, owing to lack of availability of working capital to expand the production to meet the huge demand, the furniture unit posted a net deficit of INR 1,226,831 (USD 27,263). However, KONBAC is positive about turning into further growth by 2010.

Table6: Bamboo furniture unit

Name of the

projectYear

No ofpersons/artisansinvolved directly

Grantsreceivedby theproject

Revenuegenerated

Gender repre-

sentation(male/female)

Attributes

Bamboo Furniture

Unit

Jan 2006

6 (2006)14 (2007)23 (2008)

23 full time

and 45 part-time

INR120,000

(USD2667)

2.734million

INR(USD

60,764)

23 full-timeemployeesare all men,

45 part-time

workers areall women.

Eco-friendly, employ-

mentgenerating

andergonomicin nature

Figure14: Income and expenses of the furniture unit


Niche tourism markets have accepted the bamboo furniture produced by KONBAC and the increase in demand has been steady. KONBAC’s bamboo furniture fetches better price than furniture products from regular commercial enterprises (mostly from the North-East) because of their better quality and finishing. For example, while a bamboo sofa set available in the market costs between INR 6,000-12,000 (USD 133-267), similar one produced by KONBAC costs between INR 13,000-50,000 (USD 289-1111). The biggest market for the furniture is high-end resorts, hotels and government tourism departments, such as the Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC). The strategic location of Sindhudurg close to Goa, which is an international tourist destination, has contributed significantly to expanding the market for bamboo furniture. Smart pricing policies adopted ensure that the artisans get the best remuneration possible for their work. Buyers accept the high prices because of the high quality and good finishing of the products.

Production of furniture does not take place only at the factory. The components needed for making furniture – such as bamboo nails, bamboo splits (locally called patties) and round bamboo sticks, which form essential inputs for furniture-making – are produced by the communities at the household level entirely by women. Each of the 45 women workers regularly supplies these materials to KONBAC through part-time work and earn INR 500 (USD 11) per month. Final assembly is done partly by the community and the furniture is brought back to the CFC for fine-finishing.

Limitations to the further development of the furniture unit are the lack of availability of working capital to expand the production to meet the demand. Despite a nearly three-month backlog of orders with several buyers being turned away, there is limited workforce to cater to the production owing to the lack of working capital. In addition, to develop artisanal capability for furniture production, long-term training (of 6 months) is needed. However, funds for such training are not available from government development agencies, which hamper the development of trained manpower, their employability, production capacity and hence, further growth in the sector.


Box1: The stages of furniture production

Harvesting bamboo Transportation of culms Drilling holes for treatment

Chemical treatment of culms Cutting culms into kit form External node removal

Removal of culms’ skin Stacking culms in kit form Making joins

Joinery Tying with cane for aesthetic value Sanding

Finishing: spray painting Transportation Finished product

v. crAFt enterprIse unIt


The Konkan ARS programme developed a crafts enterprise unit, which has repositioned local craft products, creating access to new high-value markets. Before the ARS programme began, despite the development of numerous new product prototypes and government-sponsored training courses, craft products from the Konkan region were unable to compete with low-cost handicrafts from Tripura and other parts of North-East India. In the North-East, artisans have access to bamboo species that are better suited than the Konkan ones for making bamboo craft products. In addition, these bamboo resources are available at lower costs. Therefore, despite the long supply chain and high transportation costs, North-Eastern products are still considerably cheaper than local Konkan alternatives. While steps have been taken to introduce the North-Eastern species, the availability of adequate raw material is still some way off.

Therefore, in January 2006, KONBAC developed a strategy that aimed to develop high value-added craft products, which no longer had to compete with cheaper North-Eastern alternatives. Since cheaper North-Eastern products have a short lifespan, this strategy also included quality control measures, with interlaced products made from graded and treated bamboo. Training was offered to communities in making high-end mats, which are now used to produce bread baskets, serving trays, coasters and other utilitarian products. More recently, mats produced in the Konkan ARS have been widely used as roofing and walling components for resorts and restaurants due to their high-quality. People who were trained under this programme were mostly women, both younger and older, from traditional bamboo-weaving communities.

From 36 training programmes conducted on mat making, 13 villages have now developed clustered production enterprises on the model of self-help groups (SHGs). These mats are supplied to bamboo-based acrylic sheets manufacturing units funded by NMBA. KONBAC has a buy-back arrangement with these groups. This arrangement provides direct employment to 260 household-based micro-enterprise women producers. In addition to skill upgrading training and market development, the artisans are provided with ongoing inputs on design, raw materials and tools. To ensure that communities get adequate income, KONBAC also acts as a facilitator between the producer and consumer.

Initially, craft-making was promoted as a home-based activity. However, this approach produced unexpected results, as younger women were uninterested in working from home while older women were. Following the strategy that worked with the CFC, a separate unit (“factory”) was set up, with local women commuting to work. This has attracted more women to participate in crafts training since working in a “factory” increased their social status. Another important reason was that the young women were able to wear better clothes (since they are going out); in addition, they were able to leave the confines of their home everyday.

A craft unit was set up in Kudal, employing 18 women on a full-time basis to principally make mat products. The presence of craft production centre in Kudal led to greater visibility, sales and publicity for the enterprise. The focus was to target bulk markets with products that can be made from bamboo mats, such as diaries, coasters, serving trays and table mats. In addition, local markets for products such as flower vases and hairpins were also targeted.


The KONBAC’s crafts unit generated a revenue of INR 114,000 (USD 2,533) in the first year, as against the expenses of INR 111,950 (USD 2,487) incurred on this activity. Presently, the crafts unit employs 18 regular staff. The expenses related to the unit and its activities are well within the revenue generated from the sales of the products.

Table7:Details of the crafts unit

Name of the project

Year

No of persons/ artisans involved directly

Grants received by the project

(in INR)

Revenue generated

(in INR)

Gender representa-

tion (male/female)

Attributes

Crafts and mat making

unit. Activities cover 9 villages.

Jan 2006

278 (260 involved in mats making

(part-time) and 18 in bread basket & crafts making)

Funds received

from various

agencies for training

INR 114,000 (2006)

INR 675,570 (2007)

INR 1,103,740

(2008)Total INR

1,893,310Total USD

42,073

Female dominated

High quality

craft items, bamboo mats and

bread baskets

are made for niche markets

Snehalata Mavlankar, is a 26-year-old secondary school graduate, who belongs to the Mahar community. She is married with two children. The only bread earner in the family was the father-in-law, who earned a monthly income of INR 2,000 on which a family of six people had to subsist. Snehalata wanted to provide better education to her children, but the meagre income of the family was an issue. In search of avenues that would help augment the household income, she participated in a training programme of KONBAC conducted at Ambedkar Nagar in Kudal. After the training she became an apprentice making mats. KONBAC noticed her dedication and potential and selected her for training on making mat designs, jigs and moulds for roti baskets at IIT Bombay. She is now a master trainer earning $67 (INR 3,000 rupees) per month. She is a proud mother, able to educate her children and take care of her family as well.


Figure15: Income and expenses of the crafts unit

Box2: Craft products produced at Konkan ARS Bamboo processing tool kit Production with tool kits Bamboo splitting

Sliver production Weaving slivers Interlacing

Drying Plain coloured bamboo mats Coloured bamboo mat

Bamboo handbag Bamboo pencil stand Bamboo coasters


Bread basket productionTo face the stiff competition in the bamboo baskets segment from the products originating from North-East India, a region known for intricate basketry, KONBAC worked with the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Bombay, on the innovative idea of making specially designed bread (roti) baskets with food-grade preservatives and non-toxic vegetable dyes. These roti baskets, marketed by KONBAC under its brand “Mannga Exotiques” in cosmopolitan markets, are of high quality and have an elegant appearance. They are 110 mm in height and have an open mouth of 190 mm diameter. To standardize size and quality, moulds and jigs have been prepared by artisans trained in IIT Mumbai. These roti baskets are sold to restaurants, hotels and resorts.

Box3: Bread basket production at Konkan ARS Sliver Production Adjusting the base Base weaving

Checking base size Bending the base Inter-weaving slivers with a jig & mould

Setting top ring size Preparing a top ring with a mould Sun drying

Basket with natural dye finish

vI. pAckAgIng enterprIse unIt


One of the first products that the Konkan ARS focused on was the development of bamboo-based packaging for mangoes. Sindhudurg and the nearby Ratnagiri districts are world renowned for the Alphonso variety of mangoes. These mangoes are transported widely to different parts of the country, with wooden boxes traditionally used for packaging. In the Konkan region alone, over 3 million packaging boxes are required every year. The Alphonso mango is rather delicate, with durable packaging needed to reduce damage during transit.

The current practise of using wood for packing cases consumes huge volumes of timber leading to tree-felling on a large scale. In the Konkan region, increasing demand for mango packaging is resulting in more trees being cut. Due to the scarcity of wood, the cost of packaging cases is increasing year on year. Since 2003, the price of packing boxes has increased from INR 17.00 (USD 0.38) to Rs 30.00-35.00 (USD 0.68-0.78) per box in the year 2006 and is increasing further with inflation. For bulk purchases, the price may go down to INR 20-25 (USD 0.40-0.55) per box. In addition to adverse environmental effects, the poor also derive minimal benefit from wood packaging, as they neither own forest land rights nor have the capital-intensive machinery needed for sawing wood. Therefore, replacement of wooden boxes, with boxes made from other low cost material, could have a number of large environmental and economic benefits for the rural poor.

One such opportunity is the usage of bamboo boxes for packaging. Bamboo is highly renewable; its cutting does not cause deforestation and its use in packaging promises to provide much employment and income generating opportunities to the rural community in this region. Earlier, traditional bamboo packaging was widely used for fruits and other produce. But the shift in mode of transport and increase in trade to external markets forced the farmers to shift from bamboo to wooden boxes, which are sturdier.

Given these factors, INBAR and KONBAC identified the development of durable bamboo packaging designs for mangoes as a priority activity. Since designs from NID and others using bamboo had not succeeded, INBAR sourced three types of bamboo packing cases from China. These were evaluated and one was chosen that had good structural design. The production was designed to take advantage of the CFC investment, as well as maximize employment opportunities. Bamboos were sourced from villages, with splitting and bending being undertaken at the CFC. Bamboo required for bending was step-cut in four places, making the strip thinner at bending points. The long-term aim of this system was to provide villages adjacent to mango orchards with pre-processed strips needed for assembling packaging cases. Women groups in these villages, who would have been trained earlier on, were to be equipped with a fixture and jigs, a small generator, and an electric staple gun, thereby enabling them to produce cases of industry standard at the crop source.

Bambusa bambos, which is considered as a bamboo with lesser or no use by the village farmer, was used for the prototyping, with 1,400 boxes produced in 2006. Initially, all cases were produced at the CFC, and supplied to selected mango growers. The cost of production, INR 35.00 (USD 0.78) per box, was slightly higher compared with the available wooden alternatives. However, costs can be reduced, if production is on larger scale. To make it attractive and wean away mango growers from wood packaging, the


cases were sold at a discounted rate of Rs 25 per box. The launch of this particular design captured the attention of both print and electronic media.

Table8: Details of the packaging enterprise unit

Name of the project

Year


Grants support

Revenue generated

Gender representation(male/female)

Attributes

Mango packaging cases – in

3 blocks of Sindhudurg

district

May 2006

14 (full-time)

NMBA

INR 240,000

(USD 5,330)

All 14 employed were men, since it was at prototype

stage

High-quality cases, eco-

friendly

The mango growers who used the bamboo packing cases accepted the design and expressed interest in buying them again. KONBAC then got a subsidy from NMBA and did a larger scale production in three blocks of Sindhudurg district, with 24,000 cases and all cases were sold to 140 mango growers in 2007.

Despite successful development of prototypes and CFC production lines for packaging, some issues still remain. The production process designed, which involved village groups in assembling, has not been implemented and requires validation. In addition, the machine for step-cutting in the CFC does not work as required and needs re-tooling. Hence, bending is currently done using gas-torch, jigs and people.

However, the Government of Maharashtra is still committed to providing policy support for the development of bamboo and similar material for packaging, because of the considerable benefits to the environment, local employment and income generation and enterprise development.


Box4: Bamboo packing case production process Transportation of Harvesting bamboo bamboo culms Drilling holes for treatment

Chemical treatment of culms Cutting culms into kit form Stapling slivers - step 1

Handing the crates Stapling slivers - step 2 Assembling to mango growers

Mangoes assembled Packaging in final stage in bamboo crates Finished product in transport

vII. constructIon enterprIse unIt


In October 2005, KONBAC began a construction enterprise unit to cash in on local market opportunities for resorts, restaurants and farm-houses that were in demand. The establishment of the unit fitted with KONBAC’s aim to increase livelihood opportunities for poor rural households by changing the wider perception of bamboo as a low-end, cheap material. By targeting construction, KONBAC aimed to demonstrate the potential of bamboo to be adopted for high-end purposes, while also creating considerable employment opportunities for local rural communities. Construction offered a number of advantages for changing local perceptions of bamboo, as resorts, restaurants and farm houses are highly visible products.

To cut the costs on bringing the larger diameter bamboos for construction from elsewhere, KONBAC used the small-diameter bamboo, which is available plenty locally and also adopting a technique of joining small bamboos together. Expenses reported by KONBAC towards making demonstration structures, conducting training programmes, developing various housing components, furniture and other fittings were more than the revenue generated by the construction unit. To meet the costs of the unit, KONBAC also borrowed funds from various sources. As of 2008, KONBAC posted a net deficit of INR 3,267,490 (USD 72,610), but the deficit is on a downward trend. With increased visibility on the quality work demonstrated by KONBAC in construction sector, there is a huge demand presently. To date, the unit has built six commercial structures, generating sales revenue of INR 11,053,462 (USD 245,633) and creating livelihood opportunities for over 300 people. KONBAC has experience on new cost-cutting techniques and have tested them in the field. As there is a growing market for bamboo-based construction, there is no difficulty in achieving a self-sustaining status.

Bamboo housing construction is an eco-friendly, high-end, low-to-medium volume product, depending on the targeted end-use market, whether resorts and restaurants or low-cost housing. It has a high employment generation potential, as a bamboo house is not just one product but a composite product. The construction is a market in itself for various housing components, furniture and craft items that are made from bamboo.

KONBAC departed from the use of larger diameter bamboos for major constructions (as in Colombia and Ecuador) or flattened bamboos (called laths) for low-cost rural and improved slum housing (such as in Manipur and Mizoram states, and houses by Hogar de

Figure16: Income and expenses of the construction unit


Cristo in Ecuador) due to lack of traditional bamboo species used for construction. Instead, KONBAC has focused on construction using locally available small-diameter bamboo, Oxytenanthera stocksii. This involved developing a new technique for O. stocksii to make aesthetically pleasing constructions for the high-end market. The technique developed joins small diameter bamboos together using metal plates, with the help of nut and bolts. The construction is well in line with the INBAR-developed ISO bamboo building codes DIS 22156 and 22157 . Construction at KONBAC started with three demonstration structures. Thereafter, six commercial constructions were undertaken, ranging from 600 sq. ft rooftop restaurant to a 3,000 sq. ft, two-storied, resort for the MTDC.

KONBAC provides training programmes to communities on making prefabricated structures. So far, 57 people have been trained via three such programmes, each lasting three months. One international training programme conducted by KONBAC attracted participants from India, East Timor and Italy. Construction sector is primarily dominated by men at the assembling and erection stage of the house or resort, due to the nature and demand of work involved. At the same time, women are involved in developing the components needed for construction, creating large-scale employment opportunities at the community level, which is not possible with normal construction methods. Woven mats used for both interior and exterior purpose, bamboo nails and bamboo splints are some of the construction components made by rural women working at home during the time spared from their household activity. The construction sector has the potential to create both direct and indirect employment opportunities. By 2008, KONBAC directly employed 28 people on a full-time basis, with nearly 280 people on part-time, 50 percent of the women working on piece-rate basis. The promotion of construction sector in the region has a great potential to arrest the migration of men to urban areas seeking employment opportunities to an extent possible.

Table9: Details of the bamboo construction unit

Name of the project

Year


Grants received by the project (In INR)

Revenue generated (In

INR)

Gender repre-

sentation (male/female)

Attri-butes

Bamboo structure, fabrication & erection

unit

Oct 2005

28 full-time; 280 part-time

INR 150,000;

USD 3330

61,500 (2005) 186,934 (2006)

2,690,332 (2007)

8,114,696 (2008)

Total INR 1.105 million

Total USD 245,632

Full-time: 26 male and 2

female; Part-time:

280(50%

women)

Eco friendly

con-struction aiming at the niche markets.

7In 2001, an INBAR draft was adopted by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Technical Committee ISO/TC 165 and approved by ISO in 2004.


Devendr Satam was previously working as an assistant in a grocery shop earning a salary of INR 1,200 (USD 27) per month. The job was not a permanent one and growth prospects in income were nil. While on the lookout for better-paying jobs, he came to know that KONBAC provided training in construction and joined the programme. The training enabled him to make structural components using small diameter bamboo. In 2008, he became a full-time employee of the construction unit, working on the Tarakali beach construction site. He now earns a salary of INR 3,400 (USD 76) a month.

Box5: Small pole bamboo construction process Bamboo propagation Bamboo nursery Full-grown bamboo

Transportation of bamboo Surface cleaning of bamboo Preservation treatment

Bamboo sizing Drilling Making gusset plates


Column assembly Roof module fabrication Pre-Caning

Caning Pre-fabricated column Pre-fabricated truss

Pre-fabricated beam Pre-fabricated columns+ribs Fixing the base plate

Erection of column Erection of trusses at Erection of trusses at the worksite the worksite – step 1 at the worksite – step 2

Work under progress Final assembly Bamboo resort

vIII. sAnItAry nApkIn unIt


An INBAR proposal to the Shriram Institute for Industrial Research that had developed technology for cellulosic wood pulp based sanitary napkins, was picked up by NMBA to test the potential of using bamboo cellulosic pulp for making eco-friendly, low-cost sanitary napkins for use by rural women. Currently, rural women use unhygienic methods and introduction of low-cost napkins would contribute to improving their health. Greater use of bamboo pulp would also increase the demand for raw material, which would benefit smallholder farmers. NMBA chose KONBAC for the pilot project on the strength of its track record in trying out innovative ideas. Production was run on a trial basis. Environmental friendliness and large-scale employment generation in rural areas are two important potential attributes of the venture. The unit currently uses bamboo waste from crafts and mat making units.

The sanitary napkin unit, which uses bamboo cellulosic pulp as an absorbent material instead of regular wood pulp, is the first-of-its-kind in India. KONBAC trial-tested the sanitary napkin production from bamboo pulp with help of Dr’s Fraternity Club of Sindhudurg district. Based on the feedback from both the Club and the market, necessary modifications were made to improve the effectiveness and quality of the product. Tests showed that the absorption ability of the product was equivalent to a popular commercial product. In addition, bamboo cellulosic pulp proved to be 30 percent more absorbent than wood cellulosic pulp. One issue was the quality (strength) of the fibre since it tended to be brittle and break more easily. As a result, besides the fibre, powder was formed during the production process. Shriram Institute subsequently modified the pulp cooking process to reduce brittleness.

Table10: Details of the sanitary napkin unit

Name of the project

Year


Grants received by the project

(In INR)

Revenue generated

(In INR)

Gender representation (male/female)

Sanitary napkin unit

July 2007

4 (full-time) 3.2 million 50,0002 female and 2

male

A large multinational commercial producer of sanitary napkins is willing to buy the production but asked for a daily supply that exceeds the potential annual production of the present pilot unit! Since then, the Government of Tripura with support from the Rural Development Ministry of India, has decided to set up a factory producing sanitary napkins from bamboo. KONBAC will provide the necessary technical assistance. With support from INBAR’s Global Marketing Initiative (GMI), the cellulosic pulp produced at the centre may also be put to other uses. KONBAC is now exploring the possibilities of using the fibre for products such as soft-toys, cushions, and lamp-shades. The INBAR/CIBART–GMI design centre in India will design and develop products using the fibre produced by KONBAC. Another use that is being considered is as a textile fibre. The unit will now be shifted to the under-development R&D and Technology Applications Centre, with further research to be conducted.

IX. FInAncIAl cApItAl development


KONBAC started in 2004 with an initial investment of USD 10,000 (INR 450,000) from INBAR and a corresponding investment in Indian currency from the local NGOs. Since then, it has seen a rapid increase in its revenue (Figure 17). In comparison to a modest revenue of INR 687,780 (USD 15,284) in 2005, it increased 17.7 times in just four years to reach INR 12.2 million (USD 271,026) by 2008. It is also closer to attaining sustainability; the deficit of around 90 percent in the initial years is now only 5.8 percent of revenues (Figure 18). The gap has been met through hand-loans.

Figure17:Growth in revenue and expenditure over 2005-2008

Figure18: Trending towards financial sustainability (deficit as percent of revenue)

The revenues are derived from training grants, sales of its products and services, and consultancies. Initially, in 2005, the major source of revenue was from training and other grants as KONBAC started offering short-term to long-term training on bamboo to create awareness. The total revenue generated in 2005 was INR 687,780 (USD 15,284)


in which sales revenue formed a small percentage. By 2006, though training grants still contributed a significant percentage, the sales revenue from crafts and furniture was the majority. From 2007, the majority of income generated has been mostly through sales from the construction enterprise, which has contributed 66 percent of the total revenue in the year 2008 (Figure 19).

Figure19: Revenues of KONBAC

Overall, the total revenue generated during 2005-2008 is INR 19,890,786 (USD 442,016) of which revenue from construction formed the majority (56 percent); training and other grants contributed 20 percent, whereas that from furniture was 14 percent and sales revenue from crafts was 10 percent. Consultancies contributed to very minimal percentage in revenue (Figure 20).

Figure20: Total revenue distribution across units 2005-2008


Whereas the expenses on training and the craft unit activities were within the revenues, that from furniture and construction has been higher (Figures 21 and 22). Being developing businesses, there has been the need for infrastructural facilities, development and prototyping of designs, test marketing. However, as can be seen from Figures 14 and 16 in the furniture and construction chapters, there has been a marked reduction in the annual deficit and given the trends, surpluses are expected in 2010 in both units. In addition, an R&D unit is being set up that will be funded from research grants, and a company has been set up that will be able to secure the needed investments including working capital for production.

Figure21: Overall expenditure distribution across units over 2005-2008

Figure22: Total expenditure across units (2005-2008)

X. tAkIng stock & the wAy ForwArd


Set up in 2004, the Konkan ARS in the Konkan Division in Maharashtra State, India, seeks to bring sustained benefits incrementally to the 15,000 poor scheduled caste bamboo artisanal families in the region, as well as the women-headed households who are below the poverty line with migrant men working in urban areas. By December 2008, the Konkan ARS has linked 130 villages and 3,000 households.

The Need and Demand for Development Intervention in the Konkan

Being predominantly rural with a largely agro-based economy, a single, short rain-fed agriculture season, lack of year-round employment opportunities and extensive migration of men such that the women left behind constituted two-thirds of the workforce, there was a clear need to develop livelihood opportunities in the Konkan region, which would generate both on-farm and off-farm employment opportunities.

The promotion of bamboo-based livelihoods is envisaged to be a viable alternative that will address the above issues. Bamboo is a ‘plant-and-forget’ kind of crop amenable to agricultural operation. It is perennial with annual production of poles that can be harvested round the year and is drought tolerant. Its ability to split linearly allows for women to participate at all stages of the several value chains possible, from primary processing to producing value-added products. The poles are also lightweight and can be handled by women. Bamboo can replace wood in many applications, ranging from furniture, packaging and housing to infrastructure – there are thus several market opportunities and options, which increase the degree of comfort for the rural producer.

Targeting

The Konkan division has fairly dense patches of bamboo coupled with bamboo-working artisanal families. While given the socio-economic conditions of Konkan region, the availability of bamboo and the presence of a large number of bamboo working households, the development of bamboo-based livelihoods seems picture perfect, the low-caste association that bamboo has in the minds of the people was the biggest impediment to be overcome to take forward the bamboo sector in the region.

The 15,000 traditional bamboo artisanal families in the region are Mahars, which is a scheduled caste, and are largely below the poverty line. However, these communities did not want to be associated with bamboo since working with bamboo was not respected due to its low-caste association in the region. It was not remunerative either; most could not earn an adequate amount to sustain their families. There was a strong perception that bamboo could not be converted into products that had a viable demand in nearby markets.

It is important to realize that most Mahars are landless, unlike smallholder farmers who meet much of their annual food needs from subsistence farming and need a little cash for key expenses. This makes them entirely dependent on the cash earnings for meeting all


expenses including purchase of food, much like urban dwellers. Cash income generation for them is therefore very critical, and they literally live from hand to mouth.

The second group being targeted are the many women-headed households in the region who are below the poverty line with their men-folk working in urban areas. They are mostly families in subsistence but who need cash for expenses – in Sindhudurg district, rural poverty is over 50 percent. The numbers of such women are large; according to the 2001 Census, two-thirds of the labour force consisted of women. Out of the 12.7 million women working in rural areas of the Konkan division, 11.3 million (89 percent) were employed in agriculture, with 41 percent as cultivators and 48 percent as agricultural labour. A small number of women work in household industries and other non-farm occupations.

Over 2005-2008, the Konkan ARS has reached out to 3,000 Mahar families out of a total of 15,000, some through awareness raising programmes and other through training courses. The awareness and training programmes and the success of the KONBAC bamboo products have brought back their confidence in livelihoods based on bamboo. There is an enhancement of products produced by them. A significant number of trainees (672) have found direct or indirect employment in the KONBAC units. Ultimately, KONBAC aims to ramp up the numbers so that the remaining 12,000 Mahar families also will benefit from its training and facilities for livelihood improvement.

Development Strategy

An important goal was to raise the profile of bamboo through design and value and positioning bamboo products in high-end markets with attractive economic returns compared to alternative opportunities. This would also have the wider benefit of linking the rural poor to high-end markets (as well as intermediate and other markets). A second goal was to enable communities to derive value from such markets while working within their environs, without having to migrate seasonally or work otherwise on location. This can be very helpful for women. A third goal has been the promotion of bamboo cultivation in the region by developing increasing the availability of planting materials.

Within India, numerous local, regional, and international development agencies have approached KONBAC for advice and technical support to incorporate pro-poor innovation with bamboo into their activities. And, as described below, in India KONBAC is forging public-private partnerships for expanding the use of bamboo and rattan in reducing poverty and protecting the environment.

Natural Resource Development

Konkan farmers are attracted to bamboo because it gives higher economic returns than mango, coconut or rice. Bamboo is also a plant that does not need constant attention and would still produce poles annually. Farmers often do not even have to cut the bamboo;


those interested (mainly traders) would get the bamboo cut and transport it away. As a consequence, there is great demand for planting material which is always in short supply - the price of a plant has gone up from INR 9 in 2005 to INR 25 by the end of 2008.

Given the demand for planting material of Oxtenanthera stocksii, KONBAC in partnership with the social forestry department of the state government and private nurseries produced 217,500 planting units by 2008. While this short-term strategy to quickly ramp up planting material production is working well, the medium-term aim is to involve the primary target groups of the Konkan ARS, who are the 15,000 Mahar families and women-headed households who are presently not involved in the generation of planting material. Multiplying and growing bamboo could provide them with a sustained income source and improve their natural capital base.

The increasing demand for bamboo due to the Konkan ARS enterprises and that of the trained communities has led to a steady increase in the price a farmer in the region receives. In 2005, the price for a bamboo pole was INR 9 (USD 0.20), which was sold at INR 15 (USD 0.33). In 2008, for the same bamboo, farmers now receive a price of INR 25 (USD 0.56) per pole, which is sold in the market at INR 40 (USD 0.89). While

the initial profit (selling-buying price) was INR 6 in 2005, it went up to INR 15 in 2008. In general there has been a 2.5 fold rise in buying and selling prices.

Institutional Ecosystem Development

Starting with the establishment of a dedicated NGO (KONBAC) for the Konkan region, the supporting institutional ecosystem needed for sustained and viable economic activity was further built up with nursery linkages, a processing centre (CFC), a preservation unit for treating bamboos, and crafts, packaging, furniture and construction units, besides the pilot demonstration unit for sanitary napkins. The units were initially incubated within the CFC. In time, these grew and separated into physically separated enterprise units, which operate under the same legal framework. More recently, a depot where the treated and graded bamboos are stocked has also been set up. Resource and input supply chains linking growers to processers, and value chains linking rural processors and rural enterprises to markets were developed.

It has been observed that most of the planting material is taken up by the larger farmers who have land and investment capability. The Mahar BPL households do not have land or the investment capability and so are disadvantaged. One way to involve these households could be to make them a part of this bamboo planting material production process by using polybags that could be kept in the spaces around their clustered huts. For example, if 15,000 households each produced just 10 plants of bamboo quarterly in poly-bags in their homes backed up by a KONBAC collection, marketing and payment system in place, about 600,000 plants could be produced in a year. Every two months, the bamboo plants in polybags can be split into two or more plants and so the multiplication system is inbuilt. At current selling prices of INR 25 a plant, their annual value would be INR 15 million (USD 333,300) or INR 1000 (USD 22) per household/year.


The Konkan ARS is seen as a centre of innovation by governments, various agencies, development banks, donors and the private sector. In addition to direct impacts to the community, the ARS has played a prominent role in raising awareness among government, banks and private enterprise about the economic and poverty alleviation potential of the bamboo sector. For example, government agencies, such as NMBA and NBM now view the Konkan ARS as a centre for innovation and work intensively with KONBAC on a range of public training and commercial activities. There are a number of other linkages, including with institutions abroad.

Packaging Enterprise Unit

The packaging unit was one of the first to be set up and targeted the demand for 3 million pieces mango packing cases. It was anticipated that the production would be done with Mahar women through an extensive distributed fabrication system. Packing case kits, each containing all the needed component pieces would be given to women groups in villages together with a pneumatic staple gun and a small portable compressor and a set of fixtures. The women would thus be able to produce the packing cases locally and supply to adjacent mango orchards at competitive prices. This would benefit a large number of them, even though it would be seasonal. Cases could be then made for packing other produce, etc.

Owing to technical problems with machines, 25,400 mango packing cases were produced as against the potential of 3,000,000 cases. The production of bamboo-based packaging to provide gainful employment for large numbers of rural poor continues to remain valid, and importantly is a product production system that has enormous potential for replication in other states in India and abroad. INBAR is working on an improved step-cut machine and also a manual tool-set that will enable the women artisans in Mahar community to do the step cut locally in the villages, assemble, and sell to orchards. The ability to produce the package entirely in the village has already been proven. This needs to be taken forward.

Furniture Enterprise Unit

The furniture production system is operating smoothly; there is much demand for the furniture, with nearly a three-month backlog of orders due to lack of trained capacity and working capital. It is not uncommon that clients are turned away. As these get addressed, the Konkan ARS could benefit from diversification of the furniture technology and product range. For example, the INBAR Philippines GMI Centre in the Philippines in collaboration with its partner, InHand Abra Foundation has developed innovative membrane furniture made from interlaced (woven) bamboo. Bent-laminate furniture and products developed by CIBART’s partner, the RAAU Foundation and its network, has many applications and tremendous potential.

Another approach could be to produce standardized turned furniture components with joinery in large volumes that could be supplied to urban areas where they could be


assembled, finished and sold. Markets such as school furniture can take in large volumes. This technology and product designs with prototypes has recently been transferred from the INBAR-CIBART GMI Centre in India.

Crafts Enterprise Unit

To create income-generating opportunities for the large number of the targeted beneficiaries, products that are consumed in volume need to be included in the Konkan ARS production programme. Examples are slats and their products such as flooring, laminated boards, etc., products that INBAR has developed. These are mass-consumption products with widespread demand. The slat flooring would be an excellent fit with the construction programme of KONBAC.

Construction Enterprise Unit

Technology and product support from INBAR and its partners could help strengthen the construction enterprise unit and increase its competitiveness and backend opportunities for the communities it works with. The construction unit primarily works with round bamboo for construction. It could increase the range of construction by including bamboo panel products for covering flat surfaces. For example, in the boat-shaped resort, the exterior panels are of wood but could have been bamboo panels too if they had been available. For example, the technology developed in the Abra ARS in the Philippines for making exterior-grade boards would help expand the range of exterior products and safeguard surfaces exposed to the elements. Bamboo wafer board, reconstituted bamboo board, bamboo mat board and other panel products could be made or bought out similar to the bamboo roofing sheets that are currently being used.

R&D and Tech Development Centre

KONBAC has had to invest a considerable amount from the funds received including commercial contracts towards R&D, in some cases up to 30 percent of the contract amount. Therefore, it was decided to set up an R&D centre, and obtain recognition from the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research which would make it eligible to receive R&D grants from the Government of India. This would contribute to increasing the profitability of KONBAC, and thereby the security of its beneficiaries who depend on it for direct employment or as an intermediary market.

The Bamboo Technology Research & Development Centre is being set up as a joint not-for profit entity of INBAR, CIBART, KONBAC and other investing agencies. The goal of the centre will be to undertake pro-poor, innovative, and needs-based technology development and related R&D, besides upgrading existing ones. Outputs from the centre will directly benefit local rural communities, allowing them to build on and up-scale existing bamboo-based activities. Furthermore, these outputs will also be disseminated and validated in other action research sites, resulting in adaptive upscaling of best-practices and technologies. The R&D Centre will also make products gender-equitable through re-


designing the production process and technology, as well as documenting participatory Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) in all technologies, processes and products.

Available land of CIBART in an industrial area in Kudal has been used in setting up the R&D Centre. INBAR is supporting INR 1.08 million (USD 24,000), the State Bamboo Mission, Maharashtra, will provide INR 2.55 million (USD 56,670) to CIBART, and NMBA has approved INR 9.8 million (USD 218,000) to KONBAC for the centre.

Financial Sustainability and Commercial Production

In the absence of an institutional mechanism of financing, the enterprise part of KONBAC is facing challenges to become financially sustainable. It needs to build upon a corpus fund for financing its expenditures over one year period.

Since credit is not easily given to non-profits (like KONBAC) and it is difficult to draw in investment, a for-profit company, NATIVE Konbac Bamboo Products Private Ltd. has been set up. NMBA has provided an interest-free loan of INR 5 million (USD 111,000) to it, and the Friends of Women’s World Banking (FWWB) a similar amount at a low rate of interest to benefit 900 women. The company will be co-owned by community-based producer societies. This will be useful in helping the community derive a proportion of the higher-end value addition in which they are not able to directly participate.

Public-Private Partnerships

KONBAC has set up its first PPP with the Lavasa Corporation Ltd., Pune, Maharashtra. A bamboo products company, Lavasa Bamboocrafts Pvt. Ltd. with a workshop employing local community members involving an investment of USD 400,000 has been set up. KONBAC is providing technical, management and training consultancies. INBAR is also involved in providing technical assistance.

Overcoming Caste Barriers

The ARS has played a major role in overcoming local caste barriers. This is a major breakthrough, since traditionally, bamboo artisanship was solely an occupation of the Mahar caste, a previously untouchable caste, now classified by government as a Scheduled Caste. Furthermore, due to the poor quality of local artisan products and the emergence of plastics, many members of the Mahar caste were dissuading their children from learning bamboo processing and weaving skills. The ARS programme has altered social perceptions of bamboo, at least in the district, by demonstrating its economic potential in new, high-value markets. Due to the interventions, large numbers of Mahar communities, as well as members of other castes, such as Sutar (carpenters), Vani (traders) and Gabit (fisherfolk) are now working together in the local bamboo sector. In addition, some higher caste Maratha and Brahmin members are now engaging in the bamboo sector.


Providing training to the target beneficiaries in converting the bamboo into products that are in demand was the key task identified. Initially, there was insufficient interest amongst the youth, and even amongst the Mahar community. This situation was turned around; the strategy used by KONBAC in achieving this breakthrough is replicable and has scalable implications for various projects that may have similar objectives and contexts.

To further interest of the youth, KONBAC re-positioned the CFC as a “factory” in which people would have “jobs”. The combination of “factory” with “jobs” proved very attractive to the rural youth since it added glamour and status to their lives, and had a cascading effect. Seeing the income benefits and rise in social status of those already employed, more youth started asking to be trained in bamboo processing. Most of the trainees have been women.

The change over time in the proportion of trainees in different age groups is also a positive trend in exploring market opportunities. While initially only relatively old people came forward for training, this rapidly changed to a younger age-class that became dominant amongst the trainees who were able to see those who had undergone training either getting employed or self-employed and producing products of higher value. Likewise, the willingness of the higher castes to work with the lower and lowest castes (traditional bamboo workers are such scheduled castes) is evidence of economic opportunities triumphing over social barriers.

Capacity Development

Training programmes with different reach and depth were developed. These ranged from short-term to long-term training as well as for raising awareness. Significantly, with changing perceptions, the number of participants on training courses has risen significantly over 2005, with increasing representation from across the caste system. Training and awareness programmes have also been undertaken on bamboo propagation, management and its use.

By 2008, with support from DRDA and other institutions, the ARS had trained 2,783 (2,638 women and 145 men) and with NBM support, the ARS had raised awareness of an additional 3,200 individuals, all of them below the poverty line. By the beginning of 2008 i.e. within a period of three years, people trained locally had fine-tuned their skills to become master trainers and trainers While many of the trainees have been absorbed in the growing enterprise network of KONBAC, others have separately cashed in on the growing recognition and the brand image of KONBAC. Some have worked with KONBAC and are now planning to set up independent enterprises. The coverage of these training programmes has increased considerably with more villages coming under its umbrella.

The number of agencies that are coming forward to sponsor training programmes has also increased. Several training workshops have been organized by agencies including three international workshops, one by INBAR, one by KONBAC and the other by the International Federation of Interior Architects/Designers.


While funds needed for basic level training are available from various agencies, there is no provision for supporting longer-term on-the-job training for 3-6 months which is essential for an artisan to make products of up-market quality. This hampers the development of skills, employability and hence, of production capacity and further growth in the sector. This needs addressing. Trained workers remain in short supply. For example, in the construction unit, KONBAC provides training of three months’ duration to communities on making prefabricated structures – 57 people have been trained in three such programmes. Support for such long-term training is essential.

The Konkan ARS experience in building capacity to support a development programme has shown that it is important to create a widespread pool of individuals and households that are aware of the possibilities that bamboo (or like economic opportunity) provides. From this a subset would come forward to be trained. From the trained pool, a smaller subset would then be employed or be self-employed in their own enterprises with larger numbers in low value-added activities and lower numbers in high value-added activities. There is thus a funnelling or separation that takes place naturally due to willingness, attitude, aptitude and selection factors. This is similar to the market-based “selection” system of entrepreneurs who are successful, though is not a formal selection system as in academics or especially sports. The Konkan experience with its twin alignments to the target groups and rural poverty alleviation on the one hand, and to being able to compete successfully in the market, has shown that the building up of capacity of the target groups needs training courses of diverse lengths and content and not the traditional one-size-fits-all approach.

Entrepreneurship and Enterprise Development, and Employment Generation

While KONBAC has had remarkable success in convincing people to undergo training and use bamboo, of the 2783 people (2,638 women and 145 men) who have received training, only 5 of them started their own small-scale enterprises, while 585 of them (445 women and 140 men) set up household level micro-enterprises. Even after understanding the potential and being assured of buy-back of their production by KONBAC, most trainees do not come forward to avail loans to start their own enterprises and remain worried about the risk involved. Most request KONBAC to first set them up and then hand over the running enterprises to them. This needs further work.

Considering that out of the 145 men and 2,683 women trained, 3 men and 2 women set up small enterprises, this works out to 2.1 percent conversion for men and 0.1 percent conversion for women. For home micro-enterprises, of the men and women trained, 140 men and 445 women got into business, which works out to a conversion rate of 96.6 percent for men and 16.9 percent for women. Considering the much higher conversion of men into entrepreneurs, whether for small or micro enterprises, it is worth considering whether a greater investment into training men would have brought better returns on investment for development of enterprises, while a greater investment in training of women as finer artisans would have provided such enterprises with more capable workers


and better economic returns at the marketplace. A study to understand and mitigate/overcome the possible barriers to entrepreneurship by rural women might also help in understanding the underlying causes better and working to equal the ratios of success.

It is telling that Konkan women clearly prefer home micro-enterprises (of the 585 women and men who set up business, 76.1% are women as compared to 23.9% of men). Women are thus not setting up enterprises to the same extent as men but prefer home businesses. This might be due to the logic of women+home+children, social or other causes that needs further study.

Market Development

A major success of KONBAC has been the linkage established between the nature of the demand in urban consumption centres and the products and production in the rural area. Conversion of bamboo into products required by the high growth urban markets has resulted in valuation of the skills and labour of the beneficiaries and better utilization of the capital provided by developmental and funding agencies. While the traditional markets for bamboo products are households in rural and urban areas, KONBAC’s work enabled them to target/reach business markets such as shops, restaurants, hotels, and the like. Through the development of furniture, handicraft, and construction units, the ARS has been able to generate commercial sales of USD 308,000 over 4 years.

Empowerment of Women

KONBAC has empowered women in the region. They have greater self-confidence, financial independence and access to social networks, which gives them greater decision-making power.

The ARS has also economically empowered local women, who make up two-thirds of the local population due to male urban migration to the cities. A number of them are now employed or self-employed and have diversified into higher value-added roles in important local sectors, such as furniture, mat-weaving, crafts and construction, while working in safer work environments.

The construction unit is showing an interesting effect on the role of women. Traditionally in the construction sector in India, women work as labour to carry bricks, sand, cement, water etc as head-loads. An important outcome of the Konkan ARS has been that women are able to participate in the bamboo construction sector not as traditional labor but as producers of value-added inputs. The women now produce components used in construction, such as bamboo nails, rattan ties, as well as other interior products at home or in the KONBAC facilities. A second outcome is that women are able to now work in a dust-free and safer environment. Their children now play in their homes and not at unsafe construction sites.


Employment Generation

The Konkan ARS has generated over 672 new rural livelihoods. All of them are KONBAC trainees. As can be seen from the table 12.9 percent of them are employees in KONBAC enterprise units that are in the town whereas 87.1 percent are self-employed with household micro-enterprises in the villages and produce and sell input materials to the KONBAC units which function as intermediate markets. This means that one average urban job in the units in Kudal town is generating 6.7 rural jobs in the villages. This would mean that despite being centered in urban Kudal, KONBAC’s work has had a clear positive impact in rural villages in terms of employment generation.

Figure23: Employment of men and women as employees and entrepreneurs across products segments

Table11: Number of men and women employees and entrepreneurs in product segments

Unit Men employees

Men entrepreneurs

Women employees

Women entrepreneurs

Total

Sanitary napkin 2 0 2 0 4

Packaging 14 0 0 0 14

Furniture 23 0 0 45 68

Crafts 0 0 18 260 278

Construction 26 140 2 140 308

Total 65 140 22 445 672

A breakdown of this topline analysis reveals some further surprising results that go against common thinking and that could be useful in designing strategy. While the number of rural jobs in crafts was 93.5 percent compared to 6.5 percent urban jobs, which is in line with common wisdom, the construction unit generated a nearly equal benefit with


90.0 percent rural jobs to 9.1 percent urban jobs, which was unexpected. It would be interesting to compare bamboo construction with conventional construction methods in terms of rural benefit. The furniture unit too generated a majority of 66.2 percent rural jobs as compared to 33.8 percent urban jobs.

Table12: Distribution of urban and rural jobs in KONBAC enterprise units (%)

Unit Urban jobs Rural jobs

Packaging unit 100.0 0.0

Furniture unit 33.8 66.2

Crafts unit 6.5 93.5

Construction unit 9.1 90.9 About 3,000 out of the 15,000 bamboo artisan households have participated in awareness raising events and a smaller set of them in training courses. Given that the Mahars are self-employed and bamboo processing and product-making is their traditional and caste profession, it is expected that the heightened awareness, discussions amongst participants with those who did not participate and other means of social communication will have spread the word on the opportunity that bamboo holds, and increased confidence. It is therefore likely that with even better designed programmes and production systems (e.g., reorganizing and improving the packaging unit), there will be a greater percentage of trainees into employed/self-employed jobs.

Income Generation

The monthly income of women and men beneficiaries was INR 3,000-3,500 (USD 66.70-78.00) if full-time, and INR 500-750 (USD 11.10–16.70) if part-time, except in the furniture unit where the full-time income was INR 3,500-4,000 (USD 77.80). This is substantially more than the average monthly income of INR 30 (USD 0.67) a day (and one meal - lunch) that adults were getting when the Konkan ARS project started as farm labour for around 150 days over the year. The youth were mostly unemployed.

Figure24: Total monthly income distribution


Table13:Total monthly amount paid to employees and entrepreneurs*

Unit Men employees

Men entrepreneurs

Women employees

Women entrepreneurs

Total per month (INR)

Sanitary napkin

7,000 0 7,000 0 14,000

Packaging 49,000 0 0 0 49,000

Furniture 80,500 0 0 22,500 103,000

Crafts 0 0 63,000 130,000 193,000

Cons-truction

91,000 70,000 7,000 70,000 238,000

Total 227,500 70,000 77,000 222,500 597,000

*Calculated at INR 3,500 for a full-time employee and INR 500 for a part-time entrepreneur.

In comparison to employment where 87 percent were employed in rural areas versus 13 percent in urban areas, the rural-urban and women-men income distribution is more balanced with 54.7 percent in rural areas with 45.3 percent in urban areas. The total monthly earnings of women is 55.4 percent versus 44.6 percent for men.

Reduced Male Urban Migration

By promoting higher-value bamboo industries and the demonstration of a steady and growing market demand, the Konkan ARS has helped to reduce urban migration among male youths, which due to the current option of only seasonal employment in agriculture, is very high. For example, through establishment of construction and furniture units, which have a majority of men, KONBAC has provided year-round employment to 189 men who might have otherwise migrated as some had indicated. If this can be taken forward and scaled up, it could have tremendous political and social significance given the problems in Mumbai.

Replication, Upscaling and Relevance for Other regions

The Konkan ARS, which is a partnership of INBAR, CIBART and KONBAC, is a showcase development model of how a sustainable and viable economic system using local bamboo and human resources can be developed with strategic partnerships. The Konkan ARS experience and model has many lessons for other places where bamboo and poor rural people co-exist, in India and abroad. Already, some of the learning from the Konkan ARS is being implemented in a large tribal development project in Gujarat state in India. Given the similarity of the bamboo species, Oxytenanthera stocksii, which underpins the Konkan bamboo story and generally the bamboo story in Western India, to Oxytenanthera abyssinica that is widespread especially in Eastern Africa, the Konkan ARS experiences and KONBAC model are likely to have significant relevance for development in Africa and other regions as well.

In 2003, INBAR and CIBART set up an action research-based development programme for using local bamboos to benefit the poor rural communities in the Konkan division in Maharashtra State, India. The Konkan Bamboo and Cane Development Centre (KONBAC) was established to implement the programme, which aimed to enhance rural livelihoods, while addressing local, cross-cutting social and economic challenges, such as dependence on rain-fed agriculture, male urban migration, caste prejudices and low market demand.

The Sindhudurg and Ratnagiri districts of Konkan division pose a development challenge, as the majority of rural residents depend on a single, rain-fed, short agriculture season. Lack of year-round employment opportunities is a major cause of poverty, leading to seasonal migration of males. The action research programme has incrementally changed social perceptions of bamboo as a cheap and low-class material. To promote such changes, the action research programme relied on training and capacity building of local communities, particularly empowering local women as income earners (women comprise two-thirds of the rural workforce).

The programme also intervened to develop bamboo resources in the area, working to improve bamboo stocks and its diversity, as well as bamboo supply chains and remunerative returns for farmers. It set up furniture, packaging, craft, construction and sanitary napkin enterprise units. These units provide community members with access to training and equipment. With the exception of the sanitary napkin unit, which is a pilot demonstration, all of these are commercial enterprises that help promote uptake of bamboo-based livelihoods among the local communities.

At present, the Konkan action research programme has made considerable progress in developing into a self-sustaining institutional ecosystem. Although certain issues relating to working capital and capacity expansion still exist, KONBAC is well on the way to solving these, and has already emerged as a model that is being emulated elsewhere in India and abroad.

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Konkan Impact Study Final

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Transcript of Konkan Impact Study Final