The 4th International Agricultural Fair in Bujanovac

Thursday, 30 April 2009 15:47

From April 28-30, over fifty agriculture companies and food processors exhibited at the 4th International Agriculture Fair in Bujanovac. The fair was organized by the municipality of Bujanovac, in cooperation with the Presevo and Bujanovac Development Agency (PBDA) and the Vranje Economic Development Agency (VEDA).

A ribbon-cutting ceremony conducted by USAID’s Art Flanagan and the Mayor of Bujanovac, Mr. Shaip Kamberi, opened the fair to the public. This still relatively young fair plays an instrumental role in promoting the economic potentials of agricultural products from the region, by creating and fostering new business linkages and by strengthening the cooperation between local, regional and international agricultural producers and sellers.  As the region relies heavily on agricultural production, the fair provided an excellent networking opportunity for agricultural businesses to promote their products to larger regional and international markets.

This was the second year in a row that the PPES program supported the fair through the provision of marketing materials and promotional activities, as well as organizational costs and on-site training seminars – organized by USAID’s Agribusiness project – for local farmers and agriculture entrepreneurs. The training courses covered a range of topics from effective pesticide use and new best practices in feeding and breeding heifers to cultivation of fruits and fruit trees and new rules and regulations of the Ministry of Agriculture. The fair attracted roughly the same number of exhibitors as last year; however, there was much greater international and non-South Serbia company representation at this year's fair.  Participation by companies from Bulgaria, Macedonia, Kosovo and, even as far away as Slovenia, suggests that the fair is gaining traction as an important event for regional economic development.  With a total attendance figure of 7800, the fair attracted over 30% more visitors than last year and a during-fair confirmed sales figure of $25,000, the Bujanovac’s Agricultural Fair is well on its way to establishing itself as the single most important yearly business event in the region.