First ever trade show draws crowds in Trincomalee

Over 5,000 people attended the first ever Trade Fair held in Muttur in the Trincomalee District on April 9 and 10, which had been organised by the Enterprise Resource Centre (ERC), a project of Muslim Aid Sri Lanka and its partner AmeriCares, in time for the Sinhala and Hindu New Year.

The trade fair featured 18 stalls selling books, clothes, confectionary, handicrafts and screen prints, Muslim Aid said in a press release. Many of the stallholders had been trained in entrepreneurship development at the ERC while some were also receiving microfinance to expand their businesses.

“The fair gave an opportunity for people to see what is being produced in the area while offering small businessmen a chance to sell their goods and establish a customer base,” ERC manager Ismail Azeez was quoted as saying. The ERC was established in September last year in Mutur where Muslim Aid had already assisted the people to resettle and rehabilitate after being driven out of their homes by the separatist conflict in August 2006.

During the 15-month project, the ERC will train 400 small entrepreneurs and is providing microfinance to a selected number. It is expected that 100 new enterprises will be created in the Trincomalee area