Automobile, farm machinery fair begins in Dhaka on Sep 20

A two-day exhibition showcasing automobiles and agricultural machinery will begin in Dhaka on Saturday.

The event will feature 26 stalls from the automobile, agricultural machinery and light engineering sectors, along with 12 stalls from supporting industrial organisations, said the organiser.

The Bangladesh Chamber of Industries (BCI) is organising the exhibition in association with the Bangladesh Automobiles Assemblers and Manufacturers Association and the Agricultural Machinery Manufacturers Association of Bangladesh.

The exhibition will be held at the BCI office in Dhaka's Tejgaon industrial area.

At a press conference today at the BCI office, Anwar-ul Alam Chowdhury, president of the chamber, said Bangladesh has 50,000 small and large enterprises in the light engineering sector, employing nearly one million people.

Despite a local market valued at $12 billion, domestic manufacturers meet only half of the demand.

He added that the global market for light engineering is estimated at nearly $8 trillion.

"While the readymade garment sector has limited scope for further value addition, our economy's sustainability depends on diversifying into other sectors," he said.

"In this regard, the light engineering sector holds significant potential," he added.

Alimul Ahsan Chowdhury, president of the Agricultural Machinery Manufacturers Association of Bangladesh, highlighted the decline in agricultural land and the aging farming population, which he attributed to the decreasing involvement of youth in agriculture.

"In many countries, less than 10 percent of the population is engaged in farming, yet they provide food for the remaining 90 percent. Consequently, the use of machinery is rising globally and in Bangladesh as well," he said.

However, a large portion of agricultural machinery is still imported, he added.

He also said Bangladesh's agricultural machinery market is valued between Tk 1,200 crore and Tk 1,500 crore, with domestic companies supplying only Tk 400 crore to Tk 450 crore worth of parts.

"With proper policy support, the capacity of local manufacturers can be significantly enhanced," he concluded.