Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 19 : Artistes from Saarc nations will take part in an international handicrafts exhibition to be held in Kozhikode as part of the ninth edition of the Grand Kerala Shopping Festival (GKSF).

The 18-day festival will be held at Iringal in Kozhikode from December 20. The Kerala Tourism Department is organising the GKSF.

Kerala Tourism secretary G. Kamala Vardhana Rao said efforts were on to bring in more foreign countries to the crafts festival.

The GKSF, an annual shopping event, aims to turn Kerala into a hub for an international shopping experience.

Besides India, the other members of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.