Coretin de Chatelperron, 26, started his journey from the Bangshi River in Savar, 15km north of Dhaka and was expected to reach France in mid-August.

The boat, made of jute, once the lifeline of Bangladesh economy, and fibreglass, was designed by French naval architect Marc Van Peteghem at a local shipyard.

Chatelperron said that he was exciting to prove after six month of travelling that jute can be used in naval architecture in Bangladesh, adding it was a very good thing for the country and even the world.

Chatelperron had been in the past year working at the shipyard, which mainly builds small fishing boats.

Before setting off, Chatelperron´s friends and colleagues went to the river bank to say goodbye to him.

Bangladesh is the world´s biggest producer of jute, a fibrous substance used in making burlap, sacks, mats, rope and carpet backing.

If Chatelperron´s trip succeeds, the material willproved to have one more usage -- to build boats that would cost only one third of wooden ones.

Chatelperron took only a satellite phone, a laptop and a digital camera for his long journey.