India is going to keenly focus on boosting its export of handicrafts to the Gulf region, a burgeoning market for such products. This agenda was recently announced by the Indian Textiles Minister Shankar Singh Vaghela at Dubai, where an interactive seminar on 'Brand Image Promotion of Indian Handicrafts' was organized this weekend.

'The United Arab Emirates (UAE) would be a focus area for India's handicraft exports,' said the visiting Indian minister. The reason, Vaghela explained, was because the UAE's demand for Indian crafts was on the rise which in turn crucially contributed to the income of artisans. In recent times, the UAE has emerged as the fourth largest importer of Indian art and craft after US, UK and Germany.

As per the figures released by India's Ministry of Textiles for 2007-08, a total of six per cent of India's total handicraft export was bought off by the United Arab Emirates. The US led the list with 32 per cent, followed by the UK with 11 per cent and Germany with 10 per cent. India exported handicraft items worth Rs.8.66 billion  in 2007-08 to the UAE, up from Rs.5.33 billion in 2002-03.