Navina Jafa Coins the Concept 'Skill Corridor' in India

At the 2nd International Craft Summit in Jajpur, Odisha, Dr. Navina Jafa, a Cultural Technocrat and Classical Dancer, had introduced a ground-breaking concept known as the 'Skill Corridor.’ Invited by the Government of Odisha and the UN Habitat, Jafa in her presentation, elaborated on how the concept of Skill Corridor could revolutionise the collection of statistical data about creative and cultural skills, particularly when the large number of creative communities are in the self-organised informal sector.

Jafa emphasised the potential of the concept ‘Skill Corridor’ to foster coherent policies to ensure the sustainability of creative communities and much more. Furthermore, she shared her involvement in a Cultural Skill mapping project, working in collaboration with entrepreneur Rischab Sachan, which focused on empowering women along a designated Cultural Skill corridor in Awadh, Purvanchal Uttar Pradesh.

In 2015, Navina Jafa, while leading the not-for-profit Centre for New Perspectives organised a three-day conference on Performing Art Skills at the India International Centre, New Delhi.

This conference received support from the newly established Ministry of Skills, Government of India, and the Indian Council for Cultural Relations, Ministry of External Affairs. The event brought together marginalised street and folk performers from Delhi and other parts of the country and circus professionals from entities like Rambo Circus and the successful Phare Circus from Cambodia.

Representatives from corporations like Jindal Steel also participated, exploring innovative strategies for sustaining marginalized performing art skills.

During discussions with Skill Secretary Sunil Arora, Navina Jafa proposed the concept of a 'skill corridor.' In an interview, Navina Jafa articulated her belief that just as there are rivers, highways, and various corridors designed to promote development, the critical aspect of human resource development, namely skills, should also be approached through a strategic lens of creating skill corridors. Jafa explained that this concept entailed conducting skill mapping along specific routes that traverse different regions to mark cultural context of skills and approach the skill ecology region in a holistic manner . Such an approach could lead to formulating policy directions on multiple levels, preventing ‘policy evaporation,’ and offering dynamic management solutions that benefit skilled individuals at the grassroots level.

Subsequently, when Sunil Arora assumed the role of the 25th Election Commissioner of India, he invited Navina Jafa and her team to apply the 'skill corridor' concept to performing arts skills and raise awareness among registered women voters in three districts of Rajasthan, where voter turnout among women had been declining over the years.

Navina Jafa shared details of their work, saying, "We identified a cultural skill corridor based on the language of Braj in Rajasthan and identified four key performing skills: traditional Bahurupiyas (impersonators), acrobats, folk singers, and dancers. We organized over 60 performances in 52 villages across Sawai Madhopur, Dausa, and Karauli districts. These efforts along the Skill Corridor resulted in a notable increase of approximately 2.1% in women voter turnout."

Alongside her team, which included Urban historian Shailaja Kathuria and senior cultural skill specialists like the late Rehman Shah Street Magician, Shishanath and Mahipal Snake charmer, Shamshad Bahurupiya (Traditional Impersonator), and Shiv Ram Nat (Acrobat), Navina Jafa expanded the application of the skill corridor concept to areas such as tourism and eco-awareness. Explaining the rationale behind this expansion, Jafa stated, "One of the primary reasons women abstained from voting was their frustration with governments that made promises but failed to address water-related issues. After the elections, we ventured into the corridor region and chose Dausa to initiate a ‘Lok Kalakar Jal Yatra’ – a Folk performers' Journey on Water to create awareness about water harvesting and forming water panchayats."

According to Navina Jafa, the concept ‘Skill Corridor’ when applied to culture and heritage, has the potential to foster regional cooperation within India and between different countries. She emphasised that it could also be a powerful tool for grassroots development, addressing critical issues from the ground up.