Organisers expect the Industry Handicraft Fair 2013, with the theme “Excellence of Cambodia Goods and Services”, to attract about 200,000 people.

The fair, to be held at the Koh Pich Exhibition Center over three days at the end of March, will have 460 booths exhibiting 100 per cent Cambodian-made goods, organisers say.

Te Taing Por, president of the Federation of Associations for Small and Medium Enterprises of Cambodia (FASMEC), which is organising the event, said the fair was a commercial event for displaying, selling and advertising handficrafts and other goods made by local industries.

“This wonderful event is a golden opportunity for companies, enterprises and makers of handicrafts to advertise their products and services and show their potential to customers,” he said.

FASMEC deputy director The Sokha said about 30 per cent of the 460 booths had already been booked.

Although The Sokha expressed concern at the difficulties involved in staging the first event solely for locally produced goods, she also said that it was time for Cambodian producers to stand up and show their wares in the market.

Chan Sitha, the owner of a Kampot-based enterprise that produces fish sauce, said that in past years, the FASMEC fair had also displayed goods from other countries.

“This year,  the fair will be better because it features only Cambodian goods,” he said.

Sitha said he had sold about 500 cases of fish sauce, worth more than six million riel, at last year’s fair and hoped this year would bring an even more fruitful result.

“Last year, it was a mix of local and imported products; this year, we have only Cambodian products,” he said.

“I believe that people who like Cambodian products should come and have a look.”

 

To contact the reporter on this story: Rann Reuy at [email protected]