Damascus, (SANA) _ Furniture industry in Syria has witnessed a great development over the past few years as it has reached markets across the world.

Chairman of the Professional Association for Carpentry in Damascus Countryside Ibrahim Abbas said that the number of craftsmen who have joined the Association has amounted to 2375, adding that they make all types of furniture, particularly in Saqba City, Damascus Countryside which is famous for its high-quality products.

Abbas added that Syrian craftsmen export their products, particularly sitting rooms and office furniture to different countries such as Greece, Cyprus, Germany, the Gulf, Canada and Australia in addition to exporting mosaics and oriental furniture to the Arab countries.

He indicated that the main obstacle facing furniture industry in Syria nowadays is the competition of foreign furniture, particularly the Chinese one due to its low prices despite of its poor quality as the products are made of medium density fiberboard (MDF).

For his part, Secretary of Damascus Professional Association for Carpentry Mohammad Bashir al-Naffakh said that the number of carpenters in Damascus has reached 1300.

Carpenter Sayyah underlined that he guarantees the quality of his products for ten years in spite of their low prices in comparison to the imported products.

According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, the volume of the imported furniture by the public and private sectors hit 46,987 tons in 2008 with a value estimated at SP 3 billions (1 USD is equivalent to about 47 SP) while the volume of the exported furniture hit SP 3, 765 billions.

Ruaa al-Jazaeri /Zahra