RIYADH, 8 November 2006 — On behalf of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah, Interior Minister Prince Naif inaugurated the first international conference and exhibition of handicrafts and tourism products from Islamic countries in Riyadh last night.
In his opening speech, Prince Naif pledged the government’s support for developing and reorganizing tourism and handicraft sector and called on Islamic nations to exert concerted efforts in that direction.
“The Islamic countries have been rich in culture and craftsmanship, which with the added encouragement from their governments can be developed into a profitable economic venture,” Prince Naif said. He also took a tour of the exhibition.
Some 500 tourism experts and artisans from around 40 member states of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) attended the high-profile inaugural ceremony at the sprawling King Abdul Aziz Historical Center.
Dignitaries included several princes and senior officials including Prince Sultan ibn Salman, secretary-general of the Supreme Commission for Tourism, OIC Secretary-General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu and Dr. Halit Eren, director general of the Istanbul-based OIC Research Center for Islamic History, Art and Culture (IRCICA).
Speaking on the occasion, Prince Sultan ibn Salman said the weeklong conference and exhibition, jointly organized by the SCT and IRCICA, marks the launching of a major initiative by Saudi Arabia to promote tourism and handicraft sector into a profitable industry.
“The event was envisaged with the aim of focusing on the economic aspect of the handicraft industries,” said the prince, referring to the exhibition organized on the sidelines of the conference.
“The event also seeks to define the links between handicrafts and tourism,” he said. The Kingdom, with the support of the government, will have an organized handicraft sector within the next five years, he added.
The aim of the event was to raise awareness on the importance of handicrafts in tourism development in Islamic countries. The conference will discuss a range of subjects in 13 different sessions over the next six days.
Major topics include handicrafts and associated values in coping with the globalization culture and advanced technology, role of the media in community awareness about crafts and tourism, the restoration and preservation of architectural heritage, and investment and marketing opportunities in tourism and handicraft.
The exhibition, which is open for general public, is featuring more than 3,000 handicrafts of different OIC countries. The event will be wrapped up in a closing ceremony on Nov. 13 with the announcement of prizes for outstanding handicrafts.
