(TAP) – Handicrafts exports reached 80MD last year, against 60MD in 2017, said Prime Minister Youssef Chahed on the sidelines of the 36th session of handicrafts innovation exhibition Friday at the Kram Exhibition Centre.

The craft sector faces many challenges, including commercialisation and export, added the PM who highlighted the great potential of this sector.

Chahed said the goal is to devote a permanent space to enhance handicrafts so that the products aren’t limited to exhibitions and fairs, adding that the government is working to develop the products of craftsmen and craftswomen through financial support to facilitate exportation.

The United States of America is the largest importer of Tunisian handicrafts, said director general of the National Office of Handicrafts Faouzi Ben Halima, who reported that exports of olive wood reached 33 MD in 2018.

Minister of Tourism René Trabelsi underlined the department's determination to promote artisanal products, boost exports to foreign markets and strengthen their commercialisation on the local market