Textiles and Jute Adviser Geeteara Safiya Choudhury yesterday urged the country's apparel manufacturers to enhance their competitiveness in terms of productivity, cost and quality to face the challenges in the global market.

“I call upon the entrepreneurs to take full advantage of the latest technologies to face the global challenges," Geeteara said as she inaugurated '4th Dhaka International Textile and Garment

Machinery Exhibition 2007' in the capital.

Geeteara also said the fair is an opportunity for textile entrepreneurs, engineers, technicians and executives to have a glimpse of the latest developments in the international textile trade.

Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA) and ES Event Management SDN BHD, Malaysia are jointly organising the four-day fair at Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre.

The fair is open to visitors

between 12:00noon and 8:00pm everyday without any entry fee.

Abdul Hai Sarker, president of BTMA, Jamal Uddin, vice president of BTMA, and Chong Chong Tik, managing Director of ES Event Management SDN, also spoke.

About 420 exhibitors from 26 countries including Germany, Switzerland, France, Italy, Spain, Korea, Singapore, China, India, Hong Kong, Turkey, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Canada, Taiwan, Australia, the United States and Bangladesh are participating in the fair.