LAHORE   -   The Pakistan Carpet Manufacturers and Exporters Association (PCMEA) announced the final dates of the international exhibition to be held in October this year. The three-day international exhibition will be held from October 12 to 14 at a local hotel in Lahore, while applications have been invited from those who wish to get stalls.

A meeting was held under the chairmanship of Usman Ashraf, Senior Vice Chairman of the association to review the preparations for the exhibition and contact with foreign buyers. Chairman of Carpet Training Institute (CTI) Ejazur Rehman, Senior Central Leader Abdul Latif Malik, Senior Member Riaz Ahmed, Major (retd) Akhtar Nazir, Saeed Khan, Faisal Saeed Khan and other members participated.

Usman Ashraf said that foreign buyers have expressed keen interest to participate in the international exhibition to be held in Pakistan and the results of informal contacts so far are very encouraging. “There is a strong hope that like the previous years, this year also not only a large number of foreign buyers will come to Pakistan to participate in the exhibition, rather, there will be large-scale export deals, which will boost the handloom carpet industry,” he added. He said it is also proposed to invite buyers from other countries as delegates alongwith the traditional buyers of handwoven carpets of Pakistan which will give our products access to new markets.

Usman Ashraf said that those who want to take stalls in the exhibition should start submitting their applications and May 31 has been fixed as the last date for this and after which formal preparations will be started. He said that the exhibition of handmade carpets is a global event and it is hoped that the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan and other related institutions will contribute their best for its success. “The participation of foreign buyers will help in the promotion of Pakistan’s exports and it will be possible to achieve large scale foreign exchange which is currently a challenge for Pakistan,” he added. He said that the communication is going on to invite the top government person for the inauguration of the world exhibition. “It is hoped that this year, like every year, the governor of Punjab will honour the foreign guests with a dinner in honour of the long-standing tradition, which will highlight the positive image of Pakistan in the world,” he concluded.