A group of 58 women at the Heritage Village here are attempting to enter the Guinness Book of World Records by constructing the largest basket in the world made from palm leaves. The head of the project who is a board member of the Al-Ahsa Women's Society, Nawal Bint Abdulwahhab Al-Afaliq, said that work on the project has started under the sponsorship of the Mayor's Office and the Ministry of Agriculture. She added that the aim is to break the world record which is held by a Romanian basket that measured 19.8 meters in width, 9.45 meters in length and 9.8 meters in height. The project, patronized by Princess Jawahar Bint Naif and Princess Adela Bint Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz, aims to put Al-Ahsa on the world map and draw attention to and help preserve the traditional vocation of palm leaf handicrafts, Al-Afaliq explained. It also aims to open marketing channels for craftswomen and encourage businessmen to make use of traditional handicrafts in their business. “For example, we aspire to strike agreements with date factories and gift shops to make palm leaf boxes,” she said. Al-Afaliq added that the women working on what they hope will be the world's largest basket will work daily for a month and a half and will eventually use 20 tons of palm leaves which are being provided by the Ministry of Agriculture.
