Jakarta Fair's provincial stalls unattractive

JAKARTA (JP): If the Jakarta Fair was a competition between exhibitors to see who could attract the most interest, then the stands in Hall C exhibiting goods from the nation's 27 provinces would be the losers.

Few people enter the hall to look at the goods displayed by local exhibitors.

Most stands there have no unusual or peculiar attractions to intrigue the visitors and make them linger.

Provincial stands give far more emphasis to displaying their prime handicrafts instead of providing detailed information on their major development sectors, such as tourism, trade, industry and agriculture.

The East Java stand, for example, offers no detailed information on tourism.

There is only a photograph on a wall under a name tag East Java Province's Tourism, instead of a feature display of the many major tourism attractions there. The picture is of a recreation center in Sarangan, Magetan.

There is also a severe shortage of competent attendants able to tell visitors about tourism in the province.

The people on duty Friday night simply chatted among themselves, approaching visitors only when they appeared to want to buy their traditional handicrafts or typical foods, bags, purses and hats.

Incompetent attendants were also found at the South Sulawesi stall.

A female attendant merely handed out booklets when asked about tourism in the province.

Ahmad, a visitor, said he was disappointed at the stands' performance.

"Only merchandise and snacks are on display. And they are exhibited in such a poor way that they look unattractive," he said.

Of the 27 provinces on the Hall C, only East Kalimantan and West Java had well-prepared stands offering detailed practical information about tourism, trade and industry development.

These two stands also sported desks equipped with informative pictures and booklets on investment opportunities in the regions.

To attract visitors, East Kalimantan's stand offers people the opportunity to have their photograph taken with Dayak women.

"Come on, pose with the woman and put on these traditional clothes," said Yanto, a photographer at the stand.

Many visitors spent only a few minutes in Hall C before leaving it for more interesting attractions.

Open Space 5 for games and entertainment was a big attraction.

Other places that drew crowds were Hall A for high-tech products and Open Space 1 for residential exhibitions.

Children and their parents also flocked to international amusement centers offering bumper car rides, Canyon rafting and the Terminator game.

Some visitors told The Jakarta Post they had come to the trade fair to see a range of attractions, including the dangdut musical performances as promised by the organizer.

The Jakarta International Trade Corp. had earlier promised to create a better atmosphere by increasing public facilities, entertainment attractions and amusement centers.

The organizer hopes 2.5 million visitors will attend the fair that opened June 14 and will end July 13.

The fair is open everyday from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays, and from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. on weekends. (03)