March 27, 2017 By Ibrahim Tarawallie
The stage has been set for this year’s International Trade Fair and Exhibition to be organised by the Sierra Leone Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture, with over 200 participants expected to provide various services to Sierra Leoneans.
According to the President of the Chamber, Christopher Forster, business people would have the opportunity during this year’s event, which would run from March 30 to April 30, 2017, to discuss topical issues.
He informed journalists on Friday (March 24) that for the first time, a business forum would be organized to discuss pertinent issues relating to running a business with taxation being one of them.
Explaining the details about the event, Managing Director of Premier Media Consultancy, Dr. Julius Spencer stated that the official opening of the exhibition would take place on April 5, 2017 in order to allow exhibitors to fully set up their stands.
He said there would be exhibitors from a wide variety of business sectors in Sierra Leone, covering banking, insurance, manufacturing, clothing and textiles, pharmaceuticals, food and beverage and entertainment, among others.
“In addition, this year we are expecting exhibitors from Ghana, The Gambia, Guinea, Mali, Senegal and Egypt. For visitors to the trade fair, entrance tickets will be sold at Le5, 000 for pedestrians from Mondays to Thursday and Le 8,000 on weekends and holidays,” he said.
With regards security, he said that would be taken care of by officers from the Sierra Leone police, but added that they would be expecting the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF) to provide additional security because they will be taking part for the first time in this year’s event.
In order to ensure the safety of pedestrians and prevent accidents, Dr. Spencer stated that movement of vehicles around the exhibition would be restricted after 6pm each day as checkpoints would be mounted at points beyond which vehicles will not be allowed to pass.
“Exhibitors will be required to limit their activities to the space allocated to them. Hawking around the trade fair venue will be strictly prohibited. Playing of music will be generally restricted to the entertainment sector between 10am and 10pm,” he explained.
He also added that electricity will be provided by the Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority (EDSA) with a 800KVA generator as back up, and that there will be no exist tickets.