World Export Development Forum kick- off in Sri Lanka next week
View(s):For the first time in Sri Lanka, the 16th World Export Development Forum (WEDF) will kick off next week from 12-13 October 2016 at the BMICH in Colombo. The forum is expected to draw a significant number of international trade and business leaders to the country. The International Trade Centre (ITC) together with the Ministry of Development Strategies and International Trade of Sri Lanka, through the Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) is organizing the two-day global forum. State Minister of International Trade, Sujeewa Senasinghe, speaking to the media on Thursday at the Department of Government Information in Colombo said that the forum is a highlight of the global export industry calendar.
It is expected to attract 400 international delegates including renowned international speakers and trade experts and close to 300 local business leaders and entrepreneurs making it an unprecedented event for the export industry of the country. The theme of this year’s WEDF is ‘Trade for Success: Connect, Compete, Change’, a forum for taking business for high-level policy discussion in solving concrete issues affecting private sector competitiveness and trade integration. The forum will have four key plenary sessions addressed by world renowned speakers, two ‘In-focus’ sessions offering the audience valuable insight into practical business cases and will be presented by highly successful business entrepreneurs in the region.
The two-day forum will focus on current issues shaping export competitiveness in the region and across the globe, the new trade and development landscape and strategic trade success. It is a networking event that promotes the potential for establishing new, long-standing trade relationships between countries for a strong export economy in the immediate future. Entrepreneurs and founders of start-ups can connect with experts as they impart trade secrets and present practical workshops. The forum will be graced by many distinguished dignitaries and business leaders from around the world who will address challenges in international trade and solutions to overcome them.
WEDF 2016 is also a platform to expedite business opportunities and partnerships with B2B meetings, capitalizing on local trade potential. 136 Sri Lankan companies and 116 foreign buyers have registered for these B2B sessions, in sectors ranging from information and communications technology, tourism, specialty foods (including tea and spices), food and beverages, apparel, rubber and manufacturing. For Sri Lankan businesses these sessions offer the possibility of new customers and contracts. For international buyers they offer a chance to discover cutting-edge suppliers of quality goods and services.
An exhibition to showcase the best Sri Lankan export products will also held parallel to the forum. The exhibitors will also get the opportunity to display their products to the international buyers attending the forum. Visiting international trade delegations can explore business opportunities in Sri Lanka while discovering Sri Lanka’s potential to be a regional business hub by participating in field visits, guided factory visits and other programmes that would run alongside the event. -(RM)