October 26, 2002	Saturday	Sha’aban 19,1423

KATHMANDU, Oct 25: Prime Minister Lokendra Bahadur Chand opened a South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) trade fair here on Friday with a call for a united effort by all member countries to promote regional trade.

The five-day trade fair will coincide with a meeting of the Saarc Committee on Economic Cooperation (CEC) scheduled to be opened Sunday by Finance Minister Badri Prasad Shrestha.

All Saarc member countries should move forward united for the development of industry, tourism, agriculture and water resources and the upliftment of the economic conditions of the rural poor, Chand said.

He urged Saarc member countries to strive for the common goal of economic prosperity and trade development.

Products on display include handicrafts, electronic and mechanical goods and agro-based industrial machinery, vehicles and equipment.

The trade meet is planned by Saarc’s Trade and Economic Cooperation Department as part of its efforts to forge a SAFTA.

—AFP