SoftExpo-2010 will be kicked off Wednesday at the city's Bangabandhu International Conference Centre with the participation of over 150 local and international companies. Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services (BASIS), the lone organization to promote the country''s booming software industry, is organizing the biggest software exposition with the theme of ''Digital Bangladesh in Action''.

BASIS President Habi-bullah N Karim told a press briefing at a city hotel that the ICT event is likely to have a large software display and IT-enabled services (ITES) breaking all previous records in the country.

He said over 150 local and international companies are expected to participate in the SOFTEXPO.

Habibullah N Karim said the country''s software accessories export increased by $5.91 million in the last fiscal to $32.91 million. The BASIS president hoped that the export volume would be increased by 30 to 40 percent next year.

BASIS SOFTEXPO is envisaged to create a platform for showcasing immense potential of the industry by harmonizing all sorts of software resources and skills available in Bangladesh contributing to the country''s GDP, organizers said.

Bangladesh has now more than 20,000 IT professionals engaged with over 500 software and ITES.

Chairman of National Events Committee (NEC) A Towhid, Secretary General of BASIS Nahid Ahmed and Events Committee Co-chairman Faisal Alim took part in the press conference.