Italian
Exhibition comes to an end
11/09/2007
The exhibition receive smostly positive reactions from
local participants.
Due to the region’s rapid development and security, the
organizers of the fair have set the stage for an even larger Italian
Trade Fair in 2008.
After fivedaysoftheItalian Industry and Technology Exhibition
in Erbil, the exhibition hall finallyclosed its doors on Monday,
September 10. Around 80 companies from different sectors of production
and services participated in the exhibition, which was organized
by the Italian Axis Fairs & Services Company.
Many Kurdish officials,businessmen, and ordinary people visited
the exhibition hall, and a number of contracts were signed between
the Italians and local businesses; however, the number and size
of the bonds were less than what both the Italians and Kurds anticipated
before the exhibition began.
Kurdistan Region’s President Massoud Barzani also visited
the fair on its fourth day, describing it as successful and hoping
for more trade activities in Kurdistan Region.
The president asked foreign companies to invest in Kurdistan by
bringing their technology and to participate in the reconstruction
process in the region.
He said that the main advantage of the Kurdish region that attracts
foreign investors is the security and stability that the region
enjoys.
The Italians appreciated the security and thanked Kurdish security
officersfor the protection that was provided to them.
The organizing company of the fair intends to arrange an even
larger Italian Trade Fair in May 2008. Axis Fairs & Services
secretary general, Dr. Angelo Caspani, believes the success of
this fair will encourage a much greater number of Italian companies
to participate in the May 2008 fair.
“We are here because as Italians we believe in this country
of yours, in your desire for peace and your wish to work with
Italy,” Caspani said in the opening speech of the exhibition
on Thursday, September 6, 2007. “Ours is not an act of courage,
but an embrace for a people, a country that was the cradle of
civilization, in which we believe and for which we have envisaged
a bright future.”
Many of the participating Italian companies decided to participate
in future fairs in Kurdistan because, according to them, Kurdistan
has the potential to be a good market for quality Italian products.
They were happy to see the region developing rapidly and saw the
fair as a step toward the participation of their country in the
process.
“The fair is a good start and I hope it will be followed
by other such fairs,” said Perin Davis, owner and general
manager of Peron S.R.L. Company. “I am ready to participate
in future fairs since I believe in this region’s development
and the security here is very good for business.”
There were different views about the fair from academics and businessmen.
Some think that this is a good step to change Kurdistan from a
market of the Chinese, Iranian, Turkish, and other low-quality
products to a market of Italian and European
high-quality products. They believe that bringing in high-quality
products reduces the threat on the national wealth caused by Chinese
products.
Still, others think that the prices of Italian products are unexpectedly
high compared to what is currently available in the markets of
Kurdistan and the income of the Kurdish
people. In their view, though, the quality and the technology
are very good and useful for today’s Kurdistan, but they
would hardly findamarketintheregion.
“This fair only makes us sad and nothing else,” said
Abdullah abdul-Qadir, a visitor at the fair, while watching a
video on an LCD screen of how buildings are constructed in Italy.
“The sad point is that when I look at their (Italian) technology
and lifestyle, then I know how much we are lagging behind the
Western world and how hard it is to reach them.”
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