At the opening : The minister, Foreign Secretary Palitha Kohonna and FCCISL President Kosala Wickramanayake.

‘Hands Lanka’, Sri Lanka’s first international exhibition of local handicrafts opened on Thursday at the Sri Lanka Exhibition and Convention Centre (SLECC).

The event is expected to provide an opportunity for local and foreign handicraft manufacturers, accessory suppliers, related machinery manufacturers, research and development institutions and SME business development service providers, to exhibit, sell and generate orders for their products and services. The purpose of the exhibition is to support small and medium scale handicraft manufacturers, creating an open forum for them to meet foreign buyers and experts.

The process is expected to open new markets for local SMEs. The exhibition, which is open from October 9-12, is a joint initiative of the Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Sri Lanka, the National Chamber of Handicrafts in Sri Lanka, the Ministry of Rural Industries and Self Employment Promotion and the Handwerkskammer Koblenz of Germany.