Handicraft exports from Iran reached $146 million since the beginning of the current Iranian calendar year (started March 21, 2019), deputy tourism minister said on Tuesday.
“Iraq and Persian Gulf littoral countries are among the main target markets for Iranian handicrafts,” Pouya Mahmoudian said, IRNA reported.
Handicrafts exports of the country reached $289 million in the past Iranian calendar year 1397, showing three percent growth year on year, according to data announced by the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts.
The exports include traditional ceramics, pottery vessels, handwoven textiles, glasswork, woodwork, metalwork, embroideries, personal ornamentations as well as precious and semi-precious gemstones.
Dozens of Iranian handicrafts have gained the UNESCO Seal of Excellence during the past couple of years. Some 75 percent of Iranian handicrafts are produced by females, Masoumeh Ebtekar, vice president for women’s and family affairs, said in April 2018.
Tehran times