THE Export Development and Investment Fund (EDIF) has approved a total of GH¢850,000 towards the construction of a modern building complex for the Aburi Craft Village this year.
The project, which is aimed at promoting the tourism potential in the area and enhancing the work of wood carvers, would be constructed on an 8.5-acre piece of land at the Aburi Y Junction.
The project, to be implemented in two phases, would involve the construction of stalls, showrooms, a forex bureau, an Internet cafe’, a canteen and a guest house, among others.
On completion, the project would provide opportunity for small-scale craft makers to market their products and give the youth requisite training and skills to earn a decent living.
Currently, wood carvers only sell their wares in small and inappropriate stalls by the roadsides, a situation that poses danger to them and their clients.
The Aburihene, Otoobuor Djan Kwesi II, who made this known in an interview with the Daily Graphic at Aburi, said the complex would significantly enhance the work of the carvers and enable them to apply their entrepreneurship skills in a competitive market to earn better incomes.
According to him, since the country earns adequate foreign exchange from the export of handicrafts and its increased patronage by tourists, the completion of the modern complex will afford the carvers ready market for their produce locally and at the international level.
Otoobuor Djan expressed appreciation to the Ministry of Trade and Industry for its commitment over the years to fulfil its promise of promoting the work of wood carvers in the area.
Speaking on the Aburi Botanical Gardens, Otoobuor Djan appealed to the government to help market the garden to potential investors who would develop it because it was gradually losing its natural endowment and tourism potential.
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