Since 1962 (the second year of the Berlin Wall), West Berlin has commissioned AMK of Berlin, which is partly government owned, to put on a Berlin Import Fair. It was thought that the fair would attract Third World countries to come and make inroads into the European market while also stimulating the West Berlin economy through the money spent on housing and consumer goods.
西德政府於是自一九六二年（柏林圍牆築起的第二年），委託半官方的 AMK 展覽公司，在柏林舉辦進步夥伴商展，一方面吸引第三世界國家來此開拓歐市，一方面經由各國來展廠商的住宿、消費，促進西柏林的繁榮。