The bamboo handicraft exports contributed 2.1 percent of the province`s overall exports reaching US$168.13 million in the four months through April, Head of the Public Relations and Protocol Bureau at the Bali Provincial Government I Ketut Teneng said here on Sunday.
However, he did not elaborate on the reason for the drop.
"Bamboo handicraft is among the 14 types of handicraft goods produced by small industries in Bali. Overall, handicraft exports contributed 38.31 percent of the total non-oil/non-gas exports over the period," he said.
He said bamboo handicraft exports grew by an average of 1.97 percent in each of the past five years. Last year, bamboo handicraft exports contributed US$9.51 million to the province`s foreign exchange coffers.
In 2006, bamboo handicraft exports stood at US$12.87 million. The figure fell 32.05 percent to US$8.75 million in 2007, and jumped 86.8 percent to US$16.29 million in 2008. However, the figure fell to US$11.34 million in 2009.
Bamboo handicraft is mostly produced at Kintamani about 45 km northeast of the provincial capital Denpasar. Australia is among the market for Balinese bamboo handicraft.(*)
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Editor: Jafar M Sidik
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