Handicrafts Board to become public limited liability company

Ridma Dissanayake

The State Resources and Enterprise Development Ministry is considering the possibility of converting the Sri Lanka Handicrafts Board in to a public limited liability company named as Laksala Company Ltd.

The Sri Lanka Handicrafts Council was established on January 17, 1983, under the National Crafts Council and allied institutions Act No. 35 of 1982. Creating designs to handicrafts, conducting design centres and selling the handicrafts turned out at these centres were the duties of the Handicrafts Council.

The State Resources and Enterprises Development Ministry aims to sell all products which are manufactured by the National Design Centre and National Craft Council through the Sri Lanka Handicrafts Board while converting it in to a company, State Resources and Enterprises Development Minister Datashritha Tissera said.

All trainings, awareness programmes and promotion campaigns for the relevant sector will be conducted by the National Design Centre and the National Craft Council.

According to the minister, they are to introduce new marketing strategies through this proposed company. All properties and responsibilities of the Sri Lanka Handicrafts Board will be transfered to this company, the minister said.

The persons who are employed in the Handicrafts Board can apply for new positions in this company under new salary scale and those who are not willing to work in this company can retire, Minister Tissera added.