ODOP Initiative to Boost Tourism Growth: Jaishankar

New Delhi, Jan 3 (PTI) External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday said the ODOP initiative has the potential to drive the growth of the tourism sector which in turn will push employment generation.

The ODOP (one district one product) initiative is aimed at selecting, branding, and promoting one product from each district of the country.

It is also aimed at creating sustainable employment at the district level while promoting holistic socio-economic development.

The initiative has a "strong impact on tourism...I expect the ODOP to actually translate into stronger tourism in the years to come and tourism is a powerful driver of employment...ODOP, can, is and should become a more powerful driver of tourism," he said.

The minister said this while felicitating winners of the national 'One District One Product' awards during the Aatmanirbhar Bharat Utsav celebration here.

Jaishankar added that while making in India is "very" crucial, branding and promotion of products are important as it helps in increasing demand.

"ODOP has been a great promotor of what has been made across the country, he said adding Geographical Indicators (GI) today are one of the big areas of competition.

GI is actually a "very powerful" part of branding and that ODOP will definitely provide, he said.

The products which have been identified under the programme include coffee from Araku; Shopian apples and honey from Bathinda.

On exports, the minister said that both foreign affairs and commerce ministries are working together along with Indian missions to boost the country's outbound shipments.

The government mainly gifts ODOP products to foreign delegates.

During India's G20 Presidency, the ODOP artisans, sellers and weavers got a lot of visibility on the Global stage.

"Foreign policy, foreign economic policy and foreign commerce policy" come together, he said adding ODOP represents the diversity of India in a unique and tangible way.