A six-day expo to display products made by Bangladeshi and Pakistani women entrepreneurs began in Dhaka yesterday.
The expo, DOSTI-WETEX 2010, is taking place at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre.
Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, state minister of the women and children affairs ministry, inaugurated the fair as the chief guest. Pakistan High Commissioner Ashraf Qureshi was also present.
This is the seventh time this fair is being organised. It creates a platform for the women entrepreneurs of Bangladesh to show their production capabilities and a chance to mingle with other women entrepreneurs of the region.
The state minister said the fair would ease interaction between the women entrepreneurs of the two countries.
She also depicted various programmes undertaken by the government to develop women entrepreneurship in the country. She said the problem was that women entrepreneurs are not aware of the facilities available for them.
Qureshi said the fair was mainly organised to develop relationships and promote women entrepreneurship.
“There were only 14 participants in the first fair, whereas there are 88 participants this time — this is our success,” he added.
The high commissioner also told The Daily Star that they accommodated 11 women entrepreneurs from Bangladesh to participate in an international fair in Karachi last year. This year, they will accommodate eight participants from Bangladesh to participate in the same fair.
Qureshi also said it was a good time for the consumers of Bangladesh to taste the products of Pakistan, especially just before the upcoming festival of Eid.
Two Pakistani participants at the fair, Nuzhat Rizvi and Nabila Intisar, who exhibited apparels for women, said the clothing styles of the two countries were more or less the same. So, they said, they had a good opportunity to market their products in Bangladesh through local trading partners.
Yesmin Beg, a local visitor at the fair, said the designs displayed were fantastic and prices were also reasonable.
Bank Alfalah Ltd and Banglalion sponsored the fair. The fair’s entry fee has been fixed at Tk 20.
