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Rahul Preeth
Doha
More than 100 diverse companies from Bangladesh will showcase a wide-range of exportable products and services in a first-of-its-kind “Made in Bangladesh” exhibition to be held in Doha next month.
Launching the official logo of the expo in Doha on Sunday, Bangladesh’s Ambassador to Qatar HE Ashud Ahmed said the event seeks to build bridges between Bangladeshi businessmen, investors and entrepreneurs, and their counterparts in Qatar.
The first-ever single-country exhibition in Qatar will be held from January 28 to 30 at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Centre.
Companies representing Bangladesh’s agriculture to financial technology, tourism, real estate and food and beverages sector will be present at the expo, providing entrepreneurs in Qatar with a cornucopia of potential trade partners.
The expo is being organised by the Embassy of Bangladesh in Qatar and the Bangladesh Forum Qatar (BFQ), a non-profit organisation comprising Bangladeshi expatriate professionals.
Qatar Chamber, which is one of the sponsors of the event along with the Bangladesh Export Promotion Bureau, will facilitate at least 100 B2B meetings during the expo.
“The Made in Bangladesh exhibition is part of the Bangladesh government’s efforts to gear up economic diplomacy in realising out vision of economic development,” Ambassador Ahmed said.
“This is also an initiative to tap the trade and investment potentials between Bangladesh and Qatar and business sustainable bilateral relations between the two countries by enhancing cooperation in the areas of trade and investment.”
The choice of Qatar as the venue for the exhibition reflects the growing bilateral trade relations between the two countries, he said.
“Before Bangladesh started buying LNG, its imports from Qatar accounted for just $50 million. But with the importing of LNG, the figure rose to $1 billion, with the balance of trade strongly in favour of Qatar,” the ambassador said.
“Currently, the bilateral trade volume stands at around $1.47 billion, with Bangladeshi exports to Qatar accounting for just $47 million.”
Qatar imports around $27 billion worth of goods every year from all over the world, while Bangladesh exports more than $39 billion worth of goods, the ambassador said, suggesting the potential of the Made in Bangladesh exhibition in Doha.
Current open market sourcing environment poses a unique opportunity to Bangladeshi exporters to gain market share as well on getting investments back into country, he said.
The ambassador pointed out that the GDP of Bangladesh has been growing at around 8 percent for the last 10 years, outdoing most of its neighbours. The country has also performed well in most socio-economic indicators, he said.
The objective of the exhibition is to showcase Bangladeshi products and services, said BFQ President and Ali Bin Ali Group CFO Iftekhar Ahmad.
There is a huge opportunity for Bangladeshi businesses to take advantage of Qatar’s market and use it as a hub, he added.
Ahmad said several Bangladeshi giants, such as industrial conglomerate Akij Group and agro-producer Pran-RFL Group, will participate in the expo.
The three-day exhibition will feature a number of events. Besides the formal opening ceremony and seminars, the first day will have a cultural show under the theme “Rhythm of Bangladesh” and a fashion show on “Dhakai Jamdani” and “Katan”, types of traditional and classic Bangladeshi sarees.
The second and third days will also feature cultural shows, under the themes the “Seasons of Bangladesh” and the “Bengal Beats” respectively. While an instrumental fusion programme will pay tribute to musical legends of Bangladesh on the penultimate day, the final day will see a folk festival, closing ceremony and a gala dinner.
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16/12/2019
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