Bangladesh has participated for the first time in the Sabah Investment and Trade Expo 2025 (SITE 2025) held in Kota Kinabalu, the capital of Sabah province, Malaysia. The three-day fair is organized by the Federation of Sabah Industries (FSI) from 26-28 September 2025.
On 26 September at 3 pm local time, Sabah State Deputy Chief Minister and Works Minister Datuk Shahelmey Yahya inaugurated the fair. After the inauguration ceremony, he visited the stalls of various countries, including the booth of “Pran”, a famous food manufacturer of Bangladesh, which was participating at the initiative of the Bangladesh High Commission.
Acting High Commissioner Mosammat Shahanara Monika welcomed the guests at the Bangladesh booth. During this time, he informed about the various exportable products of Bangladesh displayed at the booth and sought the cooperation of the state government in expanding the market for famous Bangladeshi products in the state of Sabah. The Deputy Chief Minister thanked the High Commission of Bangladesh and praised the export products of Bangladesh, including the various products of ‘Pran’. Later, he presented certificates of appreciation to the Acting High Commissioner of Bangladesh and the representative of ‘Pran’.
Also present at the event were the fair’s organizing chairman Datuk Richard Lim, Federation of Sabah Industries (FSI) president Natalie Fung, representatives from various departments of the Sabah state government, representatives from the Chamber of Commerce, Bangladesh High Commission Counselor (Consular) Md. Morshed Alam, First Secretary (Commercial) Pranab Kumar Ghosh, Third Secretary (Political) Md. Tanzim Hossain and representatives of ‘Pran’—Abu Bakar Siddique (Head of Sales), Md. Parvez Hira (Head of Sales), Saqib Rafi (Marketing Executive) and Murugan Mark (Business Development, Sabah).
On the second day of the fair (September 27), Acting High Commissioner Mosammat Shahanara Monica held a meeting with FSI President Natalie Fung, former President Datuk Richard Lim and other representatives of the Federation. During the meeting, she sought cooperation in expanding the market for Bangladeshi products in the Sabah region and invited a business delegation to visit Bangladesh in the near future. The Federation representatives expressed interest in this matter.
It is worth noting that various exportable products including food and beverages, jute products, leather products, ceramics, plastic products, ready-made garments are being displayed in the Bangladesh pavilion at SITE 2025. It is expected that this participation will create new opportunities for expanding the market for Bangladeshi products in the eastern part of Malaysia, including the state of Sabah.
