The 18th Dhaka International Trade Fair 2013 ended on Thursday with the traders bagging export orders worth Tk 157 crore at the biggest trade exposition in the country.
The target to clinch spot orders was Tk 45 crore while last year the traders had bagged spot orders worth Tk 43 crore. The 18th DITF 2013 has achieved its goal, said commerce minister GM Quader, adding that the fair would help local entrepreneurs brand their products.
He was addressing the concluding ceremony of the month-long fair jointly organised by the Export Promotion Bureau and the commerce ministry at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar in the capital.
The minister said the government had taken initiatives to set up a permanent DITF complex at Purbachal.
The construction of the complex would start within the shortest possible time with the help of China, he added.
‘As we do not have a permanent structure, there were a few anomalies at the Trade Fair 2013,’ said the minister.
ABM Abul Kashem, chairman of the parliamentary standing committee on commerce ministry, said that the international trade fair plays a significant role in increasing the nation’s trade and export volume.
Local entrepreneurs will have to make diverse products and explore new markets, he said.
Commerce secretary Mahbub Ahmed said Bangladesh is emerging as a prosperous country and all the credit goes to the businessmen.
Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry president Kazi Akram Uddin Ahmed said increasing the export volume is a must to achieve the goal of being a middle-income country by the year 2021.
The business community is a key player in the country’s economy, he said, adding that the government has to ensure a business-friendly environment.
Akram said political instability is the main concern for local and international investors, which is demolishing the image of the country in the global market.
Urging the local entrepreneurs to ensure the quality of their products, he said, ‘Bangladesh itself is a vibrant market as we have a population of 160 million.’
A total of 502 national and international companies from 12 different countries took part in the fair, displaying their products at 31 stalls. The major foreign participants came from the USA, India, Pakistan, China, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
At the concluding ceremony, the organisers awarded 41 participants in different categories, including best women entrepreneur, best foreign stall and the best decorated stall.
People thronged the fair on the last day yesterday while plastic goods and crockery stalls drew the most number of visitors.
-With New Age input
