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| Sunday, 3 April 2005 |
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Uplifting the standard of local handicraft by Elmo Leonard An exhibition, Serendib Designer Craft, aimed at uplifting the standard of local small and medium sector craftspersons from Rural Sri Lanka ends today at Kala Duwa, the Beira Lake island, Colombo 2. Prime Minister, Mahinda Rajapaksa, addressed the 50 craftspersons, prize winners and foreign buyers at its inauguration, Friday last, on an optimistic note that the current year would witness a record growth in exports. Earlier, chairman, Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) Rohantha Athukorala said that January's exports was a record, and the trend would continue through the year. Premier Rajapaksa complimented Minister of Advanced Technology and National Enterprise Development Minister, Rohitha Bogollagama for good work done during the `previous regime' to uplift the standards of craftspersons and their crafts. Minister Bogollagama would continue his good work under the present government. Going through the villages, the Prime Minister often met craftspersons who were clever and competent to produce crafts of quality. Their designs however, often, did not match the needs of overseas buyers. This situation was being met with the hiring of expertise to educate designers on the needs of foreign buyers. The Prime Minister thought aloud that the Sri Lankan culture also had to be incorporated into the designs of crafts, both for the local and outside world, and was sure the local craftspersons would do Lanka proud in this respect, with the heightening export drive, in the future. On display are collections of jewellery, craft based giftware, ornamentalware and utilityware items made out of ceramic, wood, metal, paper and natural material and the Prime Minister was pleased that the EDB was arranging the disbursement of loans though the Rural Bank and finding markets for these diverse craftspersons. |
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