Jaffna International Fair: Revival of a once-dead city

The Northern Province, having trade links cut off from the rest of the world and the rest of the country during war time, is now closely linked thanks to the annual 3-day, Jaffna International Trade Fair.

Making this observation, K. Poornachandran, former Chairman, Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Yalpanam (CCIY), speaking at the launch of the Jaffna International Trade Fair 2019 held last week at Hotel Ramada, Colombo, said that the trade fair would be held from January 25 to 27 for the 10th time.

He said that this trade fair was inaugurated ‘on the heels’ of the war and had to face tremendous difficulties. When they started there were only about 40 stalls while today there are more than 350 stalls, most of which are run by Colombo-based companies, international trade delegates, Indian and West Asians, and for the first time China is also showing interest.

When the stall holders, other delegates and representatives were flocking to Jaffna for the early trade fairs one of the big problems was providing accommodation for them to stay for three days and during the early exhibition time these guests had to be accommodated in homes of local organisers.

Mr. Poornachandran indicated that today there are more than 40 hotels that have come up in Jaffna area with nearly 15 more coming up and among them are some five star hotels. During the exhibition time all these hotels are full.

He said that it is the single annual event that draws a massive number of visitors – more than 65,000 and during the three days at least 20,000 of them make some sort of purchase. During the course of this annual exhibition the progress has been unprecedented, he pointed out as the entire peninsula is awakened for three days of the year.

The success, he said, was partly due to the wide coverage given by the media and in this context paid tribute to the work of the media in promoting this event.

This trade fair is now identified as

‘The Gateway to the North’ and it would be the meeting hot spot for traders and businesses both local and international, the one-stop shop for businesses in the rapidly developing Northern peninsula.

The expo is organized and managed by Lanka Exhibition and Conference Services (Pvt) Ltd (LECS) in association with the CCIY with the support of the Jaffna Municipal Council, the Sri Lanka Convention Bureau and the International Business Council.

Aassim Mukthar, CEO, Lanka Exhibition and Conference Services Ltd (LECS), said that they started this exhibition at the peak of the war in 2002 thereafter their main event was in 2010 and there onwards they had events every year and this exhibition opens the gates to bring trade and investment to the North.

He reminisced that when they first started the event it was a logistical nightmare for the companies to come and display their goods because the A9 road was not in a very good condition and there were restrictions on movements. But they overcame all the obstacles and are now able to have the biggest trade event in the North. At the same time it helped bridge the gap between the North and all parts of the country, attracting foreigners from neighbouring countries while another aim is to bring buyers and sellers to meet under one roof.

There would be parallel seminars, workshops and conferences while helping the industries in the North to grow while the exhibition is also instrumental in the change of the lifestyle of the people of the area. The event attracted trade delegations from Mannar, Mullaitivu, Vavuniya and Trincomalee, while busloads of traders, people and other delegates come from the South and other parts of the country. He said “We have created something unique in Jaffna that makes it attractive for the people to come and see something different, the revival of a ‘Dead City’.”

(QP)

He said that it is the single annual event that draws a massive number of visitors – more than 65,000 and during the three days at least 20,000 of them make some sort of purchase.