DUSHANBE, April 8, 2014, Asia-Plus -- A roundtable to discuss challenges faced by Tajikistan’s handicraft sector is being held at the Ismaili Center in Dushanbe today.

Organized by the Association of Craftsmen of Tajikistan, the event has reportedly brought together craftsmen, representatives of business intermediary organizations (BIOs) and relevant government bodies to discuss the ways of development of the handicraft sector and strengthening of export potentials and expansion of international trade.

According to the Association of Craftsmen of Tajikistan, the general objective of the meeting is in coordinating activities of enterprises involved in the country’s handicraft sector.

The meeting is held within the framework of the project, Handicraft and Business through Regional Integration and Fair Trade Market.  This project is supported by the European Union in the framework of the Central Asia Invest program and co-financed by international non-government organization Cesvi.

Launched in 2007, Central Asia Invest is promoting the development of the private sector, especially of small and medium-sized enterprises, in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.  The program is working on two levels: On the level of Central Asia Business Intermediary Organizations to improve their services to small and medium-sized enterprises, and on the policy level to improve the overall business climate.