TEHRAN ––A rural village and two towns situated in Kalat county, northeast Iran, have been designated as national hubs of handicrafts.

The visiting tourism minister Ezzatollah Zarghami, along with a host of local officials and cultural heritage enthusiasts, celebrated the new registrations on the national list for intangible cultural heritage, Mehr reported on Friday.

Based on available data, Iran exported $400 million worth of handicrafts during the first ten months of the past [Iranian calendar] year, which ended on March 20.

Iraq, Afghanistan, Germany, the United States, and the coastal states of the Persian Gulf are among the countries that traditionally import ceramics, porcelain, hand-woven clothing, personal jewelry, and semi-precious stones from Iran.

According to the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts, Iran has the most cities and towns registered with the World Crafts Council (WCC), followed by China with seven, Chile with four, and India with three designated ones.

AFM