By Amos Muang Nsah
Organized by the Independent Industrialists and Businessmen’s Association (MÜSIAD), the 19th edition of the biennial MÜSIAD EXPO looks to be a stage that will help generate new cooperation when foreign buyers and officials from different countries meet.
Industrialists, entrepreneurs and investors from 124 countries will gather between Nov. 2-5 at TÜYAP Istanbul Fair and Congress Center for the event that is also expected to host over 100,000 visitors in the 25,000 square-meters exhibition area.
Speaking recently, MUSIAD Chair Mahmut Asmali said that the expo is aimed at generating a business volume of around 3 trillion FCFA ($5 billion), dubbing the fair “a trade diplomacy summit.”
In a press conference last Thursday October 27, 2022 MUSIAD Chair added that buyers from over 50 countries, especially Azerbaijan, Russia, China, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Indonesia, Pakistan, and Iran, will participate in the event.
He said more than 300 Turkish firms, or even more than 400 with startups included, will tout their products at the event.
“Our main goal at our fair is to enable a trade link of $5 billion. Türkiye is the center of regional and global trade. The strategic location of our country and the potential it holds offer great opportunities,” Asmalı said.
The 19th MÜSIAD EXPO will also feature ambassadors from Developing-8 (D-8) countries who will come together for a summit that will be held for the first time as part of the fair.
Alongside Türkiye, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Egypt, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria and Pakistan are members of the D-8 that is based in Istanbul.
MUSIAD was launched in June 1997 after then-Turkish Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan proposed the creation of an economic group consisting of eight emerging economies from the Muslim world.
At the MÜSIAD EXPO, Asmalı said memorandums of understanding will be signed between D-8 members to boost Türkiye’s trade with these nations.
As part of the expo, visitors will be able to examine on-site products and services from 24 different sectors, including Türkiye’s lucrative defense industry, spearheaded by its famed drones.
Worth highlighting is the fact that Bayraktar TB2, a pioneering drone that earned fame for its critical role in several conflicts, including in Ukraine, is among the products that will be displayed on the sidelines of the fair and that MÜSIAD’s village project in the northern Syrian province of Idlib will be inaugurated at the end of this month. It will include 600 briquette homes designed to house around 4,000 people.
