Dhaka Int'l Trade Fair begins Sunday

Economic Correspondent: The month-long 22nd Dhaka International Trade Fair 2017 will kick off Sunday at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar in the capital's Agargaon area.  

The fair will continue till January 31. It will open at 10.00am to 10.00pm for all.

Ticket of Tk.30 has been fixed as entry fee for adults while Tk.20 for children.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is expected to inaugurate the fair at 10.00am Sunday as the chief guest.

The fair has been organised by the commerce ministry and Export Promotion Bureau (EPB).

Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed came up with the above disclosures at a press briefing jointly organised by the ministry and EPB on Saturday noon.

He said 21 countries beside hosts Bangladesh are taking part in the fair. The other countries are - India, Pakistan, China, Malaysia, Iran, Thailand, United States, Turkey, Singapore, Australia, United Kingdom, South Korea, Germany, Nepal, Hong Kong, Japan, Arab Emirates, Mauritius, Ghana, Morocco and Bhutan.   

A total of 580 stalls in 13 categories including general, premier, reserved, foreign pavilions, food stalls etc will be in the fair. Besides, there will be Bangabandhu Pavilion decorated with the history of liberation war.  

Moreover, there will be an e-shop, two parks for kids, three blood collecting centers, one first aid center, one mother-infant center, flower gardens and ATM booths.

All out security measures have been taken to ensure the security of the fair. BGB, RAB, Ansar along with private security forces and police will be deployed at the venue. A total of 140 CCTV cameras have been set up.

Informing that the fair drew export orders worth Tk.22.86 crore in 2010, Tk.25 crore in 2011, Tk.43.18 crore in 2012, Tk.157 crore in 2013, Tk.80 crore in 2014 and Tk. 85 crore in 2015, the commerce minister hoped that this year, the amount would be higher.

risingbd/DHAKA/Dec 31, 2016/Nasir/Augustin Sujan