Nagaland targets 5,000 skilled youth as state works to set up yarn bank for weavers
Nagaland aims to empower 5,000 youth with weaving skills and create a yarn bank for raw material access. This move is designed to boost the handloom sector and improve weavers’ livelihoods
- Mar 10, 2026,
- Updated Mar 10, 2026, 8:10 PM IST
The Nagaland government is working to establish a Yarn Bank that will supply quality yarn at affordable rates to local weavers, helping reduce production costs and sustain output of traditional Naga textile designs in wider markets, Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio said on March 10.
Continuing his remarks on MSME development at the eighth session of the 14th NLA, Rio said the state was promoting cluster-based development and value addition in food processing, handicrafts, handloom and agro-based industries, and was examining provisions to ensure a percentage of government procurement was sourced from indigenous MSME enterprises.
On the skilling front, the Nagaland Skill and Entrepreneurship Development Mission had enrolled 3,091 candidates in training as of February 2026, with 2,365 having completed programmes and 495 currently undergoing training. The government aimed to skill 5,000 youth in total.
Under the RAMP initiative, the state was working to enhance MSME competitiveness through capacity building, registration drives and buyer-seller meets. The PM Vishwakarma Scheme had received over 25,000 artisan applications, with training and financial assistance being facilitated.
Nagaland ranked third among small states in the Export Preparedness Index 2024. Coffee from the state was being exported to the UAE, with demand growing from Bahrain, Europe, South Korea, Singapore and Japan. Pineapples and processed king chilli were also reaching international markets.
Rio acknowledged that access to credit, bank approvals and market linkages remained challenges, and said the government would continue working with banks and district industries centres to support entrepreneurs.
He asked legislators to encourage youth in their constituencies to explore enterprise opportunities, and said the government would keep focusing on improving the ease of doing business, strengthening financial support systems and promoting innovation so that MSMEs could grow into sustainable and competitive enterprises.