Business
Poor Patronage At Kaduna Trade Fair Worries Traders
Petty traders at the ongoing 33rd Kaduna International Trade Fair have decried poor patronage.
They told reporters in Kaduna that the poor sales might have been caused by the insecurity in the northern part of the country.
A trader, Malam Umar Sarki, who sells children’s toys and clothes, said that the poor turnout of visitors to the fair was due to frequent bomb attacks in the country.
“Even Kaduna residents are scared of attending the fair due to constant explosion. Nobody wants to come and become a victim of any attack.
“I attended the previous fairs in Kaduna, but I have never witnessed poor sales as being experienced now,” he said.
Another trader, Musa Yaron-Mallam attributed the poor sales to the alleged poor state of the economy.
Yaron-Mallam said that most residents could not attend the fair because of the little cash at their disposal.
“Many people do not have enough money and things are so expensive, especially transport fare.
“So people would prefer to buy their needs in markets close to their environment rather than travel this far to attend the fair, ’’he said.
The Tide source reports that the fair ground is about 15 kilometres from the city centre.
A jewelry dealer Sule Maisarka, said the poor turnout was due to the security challenges being experienced in the city.
He said that despite the deployment of security operatives to the fair ground most Nigerians were still apprehensive.
The traders appealed to the government to resolve all issues concerning insecurity because it was affecting businesses adversely.