TEHRAN – An Iranian village and two cities have been named world craft hubs by the World Crafts Council - Asia Pacific Region (WCC-APR), Iran tourism chief announced on Monday.

According to the World Handicraft Council, Abadeh in southern Fars province and Meybod in central Yazd province were respectively named world crafts cities for “Woodcarving” and “Zilou” (traditional hand-woven floor-covering), Ali-Asghar Mounesan said, CHTN reported.

The village of Khorashad in eastern South Khorasan province received the same privilege for the craft ‘Toebafi’ (traditional hand-woven fabrics), the official added.

A delegation of WCC experts visited Abadeh, Meybod, and Khorashad on missions to evaluate them for the title of “WCC-Craft City” during a two-week journey commenced on Oct. 23.

Over the past couple of years, the WCC presented the same tags to the cities of Mashhad, Lalejin, Isfahan, and Tabriz and the village of Kalpourgan.

Iran’s handicrafts exports reached $107 million in the first half of the current Iranian calendar year (started March 21), growing 9.5 percent year on year.

Traditional ceramics, pottery vessels, handwoven cloths as well as personal ornamentations with precious and semi-precious gemstones are among Iranian exports to Iraq, Afghanistan and Germany, the U.S., the UK, and other countries.

AFM/MQ/MG