Handicraft exports see steady boom

The country’s handicraft exports have been registering a steady annual growth of 15-20 per cent for the past several years due to a low cost of production, accessibility of loans with single digit interest rate, exploration of untapped markets and availability of raw materials, industry players said.

Besides, value addition to products, skilled labour and government support have also helped to boost the sector, they added.

During the financial year 2018-19 (July–November), export earnings from handicrafts fetched $8.86 million, a 49.41 per cent growth from the $5.93 million earnings during the same period in the previous fiscal year (2017-18), according to Export Promotion Bureau (EPB).

Ashrafur Rahman Faruque, president of Bangladesh Handicrafts Manufacturers and Exporters’ Association (BHMEA), told The Independent that three new products, including terracotta and shotorongi, were added to the export basket, which eventually helped to increase the performance.

He explained that terracotta was a soil-based craft while shotorongi was a completely handmade carpet manufactured in Rangpur district.

Faruque, who also owns Nipun Crafts Ltd, said SME Foundation, a government-owned organisation, was offering loans with single-digit interest rates to new entrepreneurs to encourage the export of handicrafts. This has helped the emerging entrepreneurs to explore new markets for exporting innovative products, he added.

“Our wage rate is comparatively lower than other handicraft-producing countries. Moreover, all types of raw materials are available in our country,” he said.

“Countries like China, Vietnam and Thailand, which are known for producing handicraft products, are shifting to high-tech industries. This is an opportunity for us to capture the global market, which is a billion-dollar market at present,” he added.

The size of the local market was also increasing at an approximate amount of Tk 10,000-12,000 crore, he informed.

The BHMEA president said Bangladesh mostly exported two types of handicrafts like home furnishing products and various types and forms of baskets made of bamboo, yarn, jute, cane and plastic.

“The home furnishing items exported from Bangladesh include pillow covers, jute bags, executive bags, laptop bags, shaving kits bags and nakshi kantha,” he added.

Besides these items, Bangladesh also produces and exports traditional handicraft products like pottery, tant, muslin, jamdani, bamboo craft, shital pati and jute items.

The country exports handicrafts mostly to North America, Europe and the Middle East. “Cane is the most important raw material of handicrafts. We must preserve this component”, he added.

At the same time, the sector also faced some challenges. “We don’t have adequate research labs to produce unique and innovative designs. We don’t have any research institution for analysing the local and global markets and their needs and demands,” Faruque said.

On the process of production and export, he said, “The artisans produce handicraft products in different parts of the country. We outsource and collect the products from them. After assembling the products, finishing and packaging works are undertaken here. So, we need a central point to assemble all types of handicraft products.”

The investment in this sector is nearly zero because all the products are partially handmade and locally produced, he said. “The handicrafts industry does not need big capital-intensive machines and massive funds,” he added.

Skilled human resources and some tools are the key components in this sector, said Faruque.

Around 50 lakh to 70 lakh people are employed in the handicraft industry across the country, he observed.

Handicraft exports see steady boom

The countrys handicraft exports have been registering a steady annual growth of 15-20 per cent for the past several years due to a low cost of production, accessibility of loans with single digit interest rate, exploration of untapped markets and availability of raw materials, industry players said. Besides, value addition to products, skilled labour and government support have also helped to boost the sector, they added. During the financial year 2018-19 (JulyNovember), export earnings from handicrafts fetched $8.86 million, a 49.41 per cent growth from the $5.93 million earnings during the same period in the previous fiscal year (2017-18), according to Export Promotion Bureau (EPB). Ashrafur Rahman Faruque, president of Bangladesh Handicrafts Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BHMEA), told The Independent that three new products, including terracotta and shotorongi, were added to the export basket, which eventually helped to increase the performance. He explained that terracotta was a soil-based craft while shotorongi was a completely handmade carpet manufactured in Rangpur district. Faruque, who also owns Nipun Crafts Ltd, said SME Foundation, a government-owned organisation, was offering loans with single-digit interest rates to new entrepreneurs to encourage the export of handicrafts. This has helped the emerging entrepreneurs to explore new markets for exporting innovative products, he added. Our wage rate is comparatively lower than other handicraft-producing countries. Moreover, all types of raw materials are available in our country, he said. Countries like China, Vietnam and Thailand, which are known for producing handicraft products, are shifting to high-tech industries. This is an opportunity for us to capture the global market, which is a billion-dollar market at present, he added. The size of the local market was also increasing at an approximate amount of Tk 10,000-12,000 crore, he informed. The BHMEA president said Bangladesh mostly exported two types of handicrafts like home furnishing products and various types and forms of baskets made of bamboo, yarn, jute, cane and plastic. The home furnishing items exported from Bangladesh include pillow covers, jute bags, executive bags, laptop bags, shaving kits bags and nakshi kantha, he added. Besides these items, Bangladesh also produces and exports traditional handicraft products like pottery, tant, muslin, jamdani, bamboo craft, shital pati and jute items. The country exports handicrafts mostly to North America, Europe and the Middle East. Cane is the most important raw material of handicrafts. We must preserve this component, he added. At the same time, the sector also faced some challenges. We dont have adequate research labs to produce unique and innovative designs. We dont have any research institution for analysing the local and global markets and their needs and demands, Faruque said. On the process of production and export, he said, The artisans produce handicraft products in different parts of the country. We outsource and collect the products from them. After assembling the products, finishing and packaging works are undertaken here. So, we need a central point to assemble all types of handicraft products. The investment in this sector is nearly zero because all the products are partially handmade and locally produced, he said. The handicrafts industry does not need big capital-intensive machines and massive funds, he added. Skilled human resources and some tools are the key components in this sector, said Faruque. Around 50 lakh to 70 lakh people are employed in the handicraft industry across the country, he observed.