Speaking at a press conference in İzmir on Friday ahead of the inauguration of the 78th annual İEF, the minister said 1,003 firms from telecommunications to textiles were attending and that they expect the number of visitors to reach 2 million this year. Last year's visitor numbers were 1.4 million.
Ergün said the main theme of the fair will be communications technologies. This year's honorary guest country will be Ethiopia, while Çanakkale in the northwest of the country was chosen as the honorary guest city. Industry and trade facilities as well as cultural aspects of Ethiopia and Çanakkale will be introduced at the fair. The 78th IEF will take place at İzmir Kültürpark International Fair Center between Aug. 28 and Sept. 6. The fair has a prominent place in the history of the Turkish Republic in that it reflects the development of the country's economy through the past decades, and, the minister said, İzmir has maintained its importance in today's economy.
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The İEF is one of the most prestigious fairs in the world and contributes to Turkey's promotion as well as opening new horizons for the country to develop its mutual trade with a number of countries. Ergün said he will share the details of a recently introduced incentive program with visiting ministers and senior state officials with whom he will meet during the fair.
“Turkey has now become a safe haven for global investors, attracting more entrepreneurs from all around the world with every passing year. The government has committed itself to strengthening the country's hand with a series of investment reforms and incentives to this end.” The minister said they have faith in the future of Turkey, as a country with enough potential to become a rising star in the international arena.
‘Come and invest in Bangladesh’
On Friday the Bangladeshi minister of industry, Dilip Barua, called on Turkish entrepreneurs to invest in his country. Paying a visit to İzmir Mayor Aziz Kocaoğlu, the Bangladeshi minister said they expect the İEF to pave the way for further cooperation in trade between Turkey and Bangladesh. We are planning to exchange know-how and experience particularly in industry and information technologies with Turkey. I hope this year's fair will offer new trade opportunities for both countries.
