Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises Development Commission Holds its First Shopping Festival in Lattakia

“The Syrian government gives top priority to support the small and medium-sized  enterprises  as they are the pillars of national economy and one of the basic axes of the comprehensive development” Mrs.  Kenana Adra, Head of the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Commission ( SMEDC) branch in Lattakia said in a statement to the Syriatimes e-newspaper on the sideline of opening the SMEDC’S first shopping festival at Alma Hotel  in Lattakia province.

The festival exhibits a wide range of local industries and hand-made products, including food, detergents, cosmetics   traditional textiles, hand-woven carpets as well as other industries which depend on recycling

Mrs. Adra underscored  that 60 various and  industrial activities from different provinces are taking part in the 10-day festival  which provides an opportunity for entrepreneurs  to promote their products in new markets, pointing out that  similar shopping festivals were held in Hama, Homs, Damascus and Tartous provinces.

She stressed that the festival is a continuation of the SMEDC’S  program to support the national economy, especially during the recovery era Syria is witnessing.

Syriatimes interviewed some of the participants who stressed that the SMEDC provides the entrepreneurs with a platform to develop their projects and secure all their basic requirements.

On her part, Mrs. Ezdehar Darwish, head of the “Syrian women worthy of life” group in Lattakia, told Syriatimes that “holding such festivals is a chance to support the local products, consolidate the Syrian woman’s participation in such activities and revive the deep-rooted Syrian traditional industries including brocade, silk and crochet.”

From Aleppo province , Yassin Sakka, co-founder of Taj Anbar Company for manufacturing  olive and laurel soap, for which Aleppo is famous, said that such festivals open new markets for small and medium-sized enterprises to further market their products at low costs without advertisement expenses.

He made it clear that his company’s products aim at combining industry and heritage through manufacturing soap mixed with old famous oriental perfumes as amber and incense.

Mrs. Maessaa Dahman, a participant from Damascus, who is a member at the Industrial Business Women Committee at Damascus Chamber of industry said ”my own industrial facility, which used to manufacture clothes and perfumes, was destroyed by the terrorist groups in Damascus Countryside, but I have never given up”.

Mrs. Dahman explained the SMEDC’s key role in supporting her and other owners of damaged establishments  to restart and establish small workshops in order not to stop production.

“I was very proud when I took part in a number of local, Arab and foreign exhibitions  to represent my country  Syria and send the world a message that the Syrian women have a strong will and enjoy a high spirit of challenge and steadfastness.”

On  his part, Adel Qutaish from Swieda, said that he started his project to manufacture food products with a simple loan and by continuous work and strong will the project became bigger. He added that the project comprises more than 30 employees working basically in the production of natural and agricultural healthy materials especially the grape molasses.

Interviewed by Rawaa Ghanam

Photos by Rawaa Ghanam