Three-day Pacific exposition for economic recovery begins

A THREE-DAY Pacific exposition started yesterday with Indonesian Ambassador Andriana Supandy sitting in during the welcome ceremony conducted via a video link from The Stanley Hotel in Port Moresby.
The government of Indonesia, supported by countries and territories in the Pacific, is convening the second Pacific expo: Virtual exhibition from yesterday under the theme “It’s time for the Pacific”.
Supandy said discussions would look at efforts to “navigate the ‘New Normal’ as part of our joint effort to contribute to economic recovery in the region”.
“This is part of Indonesia’s continuous commitment to contribute to the Pacific economy by way of expanding market access and connectivity between various stakeholders in the region,” he said.
Indonesia’s foreign minister Retno Marsudi opened the expo.
The ceremony was attended by heads of delegation from participating Pacific countries and territories. Trade exhibition, business matching and forums are the main programmes.
As for forums, there will be the Pacific talks, trade, investment and creative economy; health, tourism and fisheries.
The region will be well represented with no fewer than 17 countries and territories taking part.
More than 312 companies have already signed up for the virtual trade exhibition where visitors from around the globe will be able to browse through their products and services in interactive virtual booths.
In the first Pacific expo in 2019 in Auckland, New Zealand, the exhibition recorded NZ$104 million (about K261 million) worth of business deals and commitments while drawing more than 5,000 visitors.
It also received wide coverage and was hailed as the most comprehensive event in the Pacific.