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by E. Weerapperuma

The Central Region Handicraft Exhibition organised by the Central Region Small Industries Department on a directive from the Central Region Development Ministry will be held from July 20 to 24 at the Kandy Deiyannewela City esplanade.

The objective of the five-day exhibition is to promote those involved in the handicraft industry to make them honourable participants in nation-building through economic development. It will also give the opportunity to the producers-potential buyers and exporters to meet and exchange views on the current trends in trade and enhance their knowledge.

Central Region Development Minister Tissa Attanayake speaking to the "Sunday Observer" disclosed that the government introduced the Region Development Ministries with the intention of developing the regions, responding in a positive manner to the critics of the Provincial Council system operating in the country at present.

Recalling what Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said during the General Election campaign time, Minister Attanayake said that with the intention of improving the national economy, the government intended dividing the country into five economic regions. This way it would help to identify the regions which are economically backward and draw up plans to ensure development of the people, the development of the region. "The Region Development Ministries are set up to see to the economic well-being of the people, of the region as a whole. Help the people and prepare the necessary background to increase their income. We have been assigned to take steps to increase the investment opportunity.

We will get necessary powers shortly. We will have a Economic Commission and the Board of Investment is busy in finalising the plan to this effect. The regions will have the legal rights to operate within the areas - physically marked by the respective department and the powers enjoyed by the Urban Development Authority will be shared with the regions. There will also be the re-drawing of tourism plans to suit the regions and means will be provided to improve the infrastructure facilities. There will be liaison between the various departments of the state with the private sector and various local commercial bodies, to increase investment", the Minister said.

According to Minister Attanayake, North Central Province and the Uva Province consist of 20,000 families depending heavily on handicraft industry as their main source of income. Promoting the industry and encouraging them to get involved more and more in it, as that could help to improve them and the regional economic development in the long run. " We want our own people to patronise local products more and more. There is a considerable gap in this regard and the exhibition will strive to create a new niche for our handicrafts from within", he said.

The Ministry sources said that there would be about 50 trade stalls and a day would be set aside for the benefit of the foreign visitors, buyers and importers." Assigning a separate day will help both the local producers, manufacturers and the foreigners to exchange views and their experiences and at the same time give the opportunity to find trade potential to local products in the foreign market", the sources added.

Minister Attanayake told the "Sunday Observer" that his Ministry has decided to hold the exhibition during the" Esala Perahera" season to draw the attention of the crowd to the local traditional craft. " In this region 90 per cent are involved in handicraft and that is their means of income. We are drawing up plans to help them, help the industry, despite the economic constraints we now face, we have allocated a considerable amount for this purpose. It is also with this intention we have decided to hold an exhibition. This will encourage the craftsmen, provide them a market for their crafts and it will be a meeting point of the producers, buyers and exporters", he said.

According to Minister Attanayake setting up of Regional Ministries was to see to the development of the regions. The Ministries are over and above the earlier District Development Councils and the present Provincial Councils. In time to come their responsibilities will be heavy and they will have more powers to run the affairs of their respective regions, have control over the local bodies coming under their supervision, draw up development plans, release funds for development work. The exhibition will give us a glimpse of what is to come to the regions, he said.

He als disclosed that in respect of his region which includes Kandy,Badulla, Nuwara Eliya, Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa, has plans to set up an economic centre at Hingurakgoda in the line of the Dambulla Economic Centre. There will also be centres in Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, Mahiyanganaya, Dehiattakandiya to sell rice. " In the very recent past, during the times of the PA regime, the problem the farmers had was, to sell their produce. Thanks to the forthright vision of our Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his intervention we were able to stop the farmer going down the drain. We were able to save them. The economic centres we envisage will ensure that our farmers have a better deal, a better price for their produce", he added.

The Ministry also has plans to have vegetable selling centres.These will also function as meeting place of the producers and buyers. The meeting of the farmers with the prospective buyers and exporters will help them to grow what has the market potential. "In Kandy-Digana, recently we had a workshop. It was a workshop meant for the exporters of vegetables. The workshop pointed out that what our farmers grow were far below from the export quality. Hence the message is that the farmers should produce the best of their harvest. They should grow if they intend to enter the foreign market, what the market demands. The proposed exhibition in Kandy in July will focus attention on this aspect as well", Minister Attanayake said.

The Central Region also has a number of projects assisted by the foreign money lending agencies.They include Anuradhapura Rural Development, Matale Economic Development, Badulla Rural Development, North Central Rural Development, Kandy Entrepreneurs Development and Upcountry 2KR project with Japanese help are the projects carried out with the foreign funds. The total investment is about Rs.5478.3 million. For this year alone the amount of investment is about Rs. 1353.2 million, the Ministry sources said.

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