BATEXPO-2003, which is said to be the biggest apparel expo will be held in Dhaka from October 20-22. The oraganiser of the event Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, country’s main foreign- exchange earner expects thatthe event would attract more foreign buyers this year.

Prime Minister Khaleda Zia would inaugurate the BATEXPO-2003 at Hotel Sonargaon on October 20 while Leader of the Opposition in Parliament Sheikh Hasina will attend the closing ceremony as chief guest on October 22.

The garment sector that employs two million workers, 80 percent of them women, earned US$ 4.9 billion in the last fiscal year (2002-2003).

“We’re expecting more foreign buyers at BATEXPO-2003, particularly big numbers from Canada and Australia which granted duty-free access of Bangladeshi products to their markets,” BGMEA president Quazi Moniruzzaman told members of the Overseas Correspondents Association Bangladesh (OCAB).

The Bangladesh Textile Exposition, an annual show of readymade garments, accessories and fabrics, yielded spot orders worth US$ 45 million and sales of stock lot valued US$ 3.10 million. Around 126 foreign and local buyers joined the exhibition.