IANS | 14 Mar, 2024
The NITI Aayog on Wednesday launched the 'Vocal for Local' initiative
under its Aspirational Blocks Programme to encourage a spirit of
self-reliance among the people and propel them towards sustainable
growth and prosperity.
As a part of this initiative, local
products from 500 aspirational blocks have been mapped and consolidated
under the Aakanksha brand. The launch was attended by all 329 districts
and block-level officials who connected virtually for the event.
NITI
Aayog CEO B.V.R. Subrahmanyam in his keynote address urged the district
collectors and the block-level officials to collaborate with partners
like the Government e-Marketplace (GeM), and Open Network for Digital
Commerce (ONDC) to facilitate sustainable growth of micro enterprises in
the aspirational blocks.
Subrahmanyam said that Aakanksha is an
umbrella brand, which could be supplemented into multiple sub-brands
that have the potential to create an international market.
In
order to encourage these products, a dedicated window for the
Aspirational Blocks Programme under the brand name Aakanksha has been
established on the GeM portal.
The partners will also provide
technical and operational support for the facilitation of e-commerce
onboarding, establishing linkages, financial/digital literacy,
documentation/certification, and skill enhancement, among others.
This
comprehensive capacity-building approach is expected to significantly
strengthen the 'Vocal for Local' initiative, thereby ensuring
sustainability.
