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The Karakoram Area Development
Organization is a local non-for profit NGO registered with the
Registrar Joint Stock Companies Gilgit in 1998, under the Companies
Ordinance 1984-85, as a company limited by guarantee and not having
a share capital. The organization was established with the aim to
improve the socio-economic base and living conditions of the rural
population of the Hunza valley with special focus on women, small
producers and other disadvantaged groups. The history of KADO begins
when some educated, enlightened and socially conscious members of
Hunza established an organization with the name Karakoram Handicraft
Promotion Society in 1994. The Society in collaboration with Aga
Khan Cultural Services established Karakoram Handicraft Development
Programme in 1996 to transform local skills and crafts into
marketable products and income generating activities for women and
disadvantaged groups of the society. KHDP received financial
assistance from Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC)
for these activities. With the passage of time the organization
recognized the need of the time and initiated new projects. To
dispose-off the solid waste of the main towns in central Hunza and
create awareness about deteriorating environment issues, KADO
established Hunza Environmental Committee (HEC). The project was
implemented with the financial and technical supports of EU, NORAD,
AKCSP, WWF-P, and IUCN. The project also lobbied with Government
Local Administration and it is expected that the central Hunza main
towns will soon be declared as municipality. Soon after it was
sensed that the traditional art and culture is badly effecting from
external influences. To revive, promote and document the cultural
activities and musical heritages KADO initiated a new project “Hunza
Arts and Cultural Forum” with the technical and financial support of
AKCSP, German Embassy and SRF. During 2004 KADO started the
Information & Communication Technology (ICT4D) project in order to
use ICT tools in poverty reduction in remote mountains.
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