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A two-day Bangladesh Light Engineering Expo 2025 will kick off tomorrow (Thursday) in the city, aiming to give an impetus to the growth of the promising sector.
The main objectives of the expo are to facilitate greater interactions between the local producers and international buyers and create scope for further advancement of the local light engineering sector.
The Bangladesh Engineering Industry Owners Association (BEIOA) in collaboration with the government's Export Competitiveness for Jobs (EC4J) Project will organise the expo at the Shahid Abu Sayeed International Convention Centre in the city.
The BEIOA made the announcement on Tuesday at a press conference at the Economic Reporters Forum (ERF) Auditorium in the capital.
Chaired by BEIOA President Abdur Razzaque, the press conference was also attended, among others, by Depouty Project Director of the EC4J Md Abdur Rahman, its Project Manager Azizul Islam, BEIOA Vice President Ashraf Ibne Noor, its Director Md Abu Hossain Khokon.
The two-day expo is expected to showcase the latest machinery, technologies and innovative products of the country's leading light engineering companies.
BEIOA President Abdur Razzaque said: "…the size of global engineering market is now estimated at US$7.0 trillion, but our share in the world market still remains insignificant -- less than one billion,"
He, however, said the local industry had a huge potential to expand if the sector gets necessary policy supports.
The sector still remains an informal one as it has not been formalised yet in terms of policies, investments and other issues, he mentioned.
"We randomly export to the northern estates of India, Africa, Myanmar, and Europe and Australia under special arrangements," said the BEIOA president.
Around 24 exhibitors through 44 stalls and designated pavilions from across the country would take part in the expo.
According to BEIOA, the sector is not only operating as a backward one for other large industries, but also contributing to agriculture, power, textiles, construction, and household appliance sectors.
With having more than 50,000 enterprises in the country, the sector is directly employing more than 0.3 million people while over 3.0 million others are engaged in the sector indirectly.
It contributes approximately 3.0 per cent to the country's GDP (gross domestic product).
Currently, the sector exports products worth more than $795 million annually and meets 50 per cent of the domestic demand for machinery parts.
On the other hand, Bangladesh imports light engineering products worth Tk 200-250 billion ($1.5-2.0 billion) annually, it was disclosed at the press briefing.
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