Business

ODOP Initiative Operationally Merged With ‘Districts As Export Hub (DEH)’ Initiative Of DGFT

The Minister of State in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Som Parkash, has informed the Parliament that the Central Government has initiated the One District One Product (ODOP) in different States/UTs of the country. ODOP is seen as a transformational step towards realising the true potential of a district, fuelling economic growth, generating employment and rural entrepreneurship, taking us to the goal of Aatmanirbhar Bharat. ODOP initiative is operationally merged with ‘Districts as Export Hub (DEH)’ initiative of the DGFT, Department of Commerce, with the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) as a major stakeholder. The ODOP Initiative is aimed at fostering balanced regional development across all districts of the country enabling holistic socio-economic growth across all regions. The objective is to convert each district of the country into a manufacturing and export hub by identifying products with export potential in the district. Institutional mechanism in the form of State Export Promotion Committees (SEPCs) and District Export Promotion Committees (DEPCs) have been constituted in 36 States/UTs to provide support for export promotion and address the bottlenecks for export growth in the districts. Districts Export Action Plans are prepared for identified products and services for overseas markets, which includes specific actions required to support local exporters / manufacturers in producing / manufacturing identified products in adequate quantity and with the requisite quality, for reaching potential buyers. These plans also include identifying and addressing challenges for exports of such identified products/services, improving supply chains, market accessibility and handholding for increasing exports. So far, in about 557 districts, export plans have been prepared and in about 218 have been adopted by DEPCs. Products have been identified under ODOP and DEH across each district in the country. The range of the chosen products covers multiple sectors, ministries and departments, including products of farmers, weavers, artisans, other producers and sellers of districts. ODOP/DEH initiatives contribute to the goal of AtmaNirbhar Bharat, vocal for local and Make in India, by providing opportunities for employment, through significantly increasing the manufacturing and exports of identified products.