Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN)– The ninth National Furniture Fair-2010 was began on Monday at the Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka with the organizers demanding adoption of a national policy for boosting the furniture industry and expanding the export market of its products.
The Bangladesh Furniture Industries Owners’ Association (BFIOA) has organized the six-day fair with 78 furniture-manufacturing houses showcasing their products in 170 stalls.
The government will lend all possible helps for developing and flourishing the sector, industries minister Dilip Barua assured the BFIOA in his speech at the inaugural ceremony.
Commerce secretary Ghulam Hussain, Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) President AK Azad, Export Promotion Bureau vice-chairman Jalal Ahmed, and BFIOA Secretary General Selim H Rahman also addressed the function presided over by BFIOA Chairman KM Akhteruzzaman.
Around 2.0 million people were now employed at about 30,000 furniture shops across the country but there was no institution to generate skilled manpower for the sector, industry owners said.
The companies participating in the fair are offering 5.0 to 33 percent discount on their products. The fair will remain open from 9:00am to 9:00pm every day until Saturday.
BBN/SI/AD-07Dec10-12:02 pm (BST)
