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Investment and trade fair highlights China's Belt and Road initiatives

2016/10/13

China International Fair for Investment & Trade (CIFIT), which opens today in East China’s port city of Xiamen, will highlight the national strategy of Belt and Road Initiative and promote its open economy, striving to serve as a platform to facilitate the realization of the grand development plan.

The annual four-day event, now in its 19th year which will end on September 11, has become one of the largest investment promotion fairs in the world since its inception in 1997. The theme of this year’s fair is “Focusing on One Belt One Road, Striving for global connectivity”.

“This year marks the start of the China’s 13th-Five-Year Plan and as the largest investment fair in the world, the 19th CIFIT will closely follow the emerging trend in the global economy and cross-board investment and integrate the national strategy of Belt and Road Initiative to serve the country’s development goals,” said Li Yong, deputy director of the China Investment Promotion Agency under the Ministry of Commerce.

A host of seminars and events themed on the Belt and Road initiative will take place during the fair, which is sponsored by China’s Ministry of Commerce and co-sponsored by institutions such as World Trade Organization and United Nations Conference on Trade & Development.

The Belt and Road Initiative, proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013, refers to Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road that is aimed to improve cooperation, connectivity and economic and social development between countries across Asia, Europe and Africa that run through the two modern silk roads.

In particular, the fair will set up a Silk Road pavilion, which will host seminars and forums on regional development and cooperation along the modern iteration of the Silk Road.

A Silk Road Dialogue will talk about industrial and cultural cooperation among Maritime Silk Road nations in a bid to promote mutual appreciation and joint progress and two other seminars held under the Belt and Road theme will address risk control issues for investing abroad and cooperation to secure food safety, according to the organizing committee. In addition, a clutch of high-end business networking and match-making events will offer businessmen from Belt and Road nations opportunities to seek and nurture partnerships.

A New Silk Road thematic exhibition during the fair will introduce investment opportunities and distinctive merchandise from nations along Belt and Road countries, according to the organizing committee of the fair.

This year's fair, which is organized by Fujian Provincial Government, Xiamen Municipal government and China Investment Promotion Agency, will feature 6,000 exhibition booths covering 138,000 square meters, up 45 percent from the previous year and making it the largest fair in its own history. More than 700 business delegations from 100 countries and regions will attend this year’s fair, according to the organizing committee.

An 800-square-meter exhibition has been allocated to Italy, this year’s Guest Country of Honor, according to Mr. Paolo Quattrocchi, chief representative of Italian Trade Commission’s Guangzhou office in China. And the European country will hold a series of seminars and events to seek business opportunities and partnerships in the country, he said.

The Guest Province of Honor at this year’s event is Jiangxi, which will have access to an exhibition area of the size of 1,000 square meters, and the province is also planning to stage a host of investment promotion events during the fair, according to Zhu Yuanfa, deputy director of the provincial commerce department.

Macao, a special administrative region in China, will be the Guest Region of Honor at this year’s fair and and the Macao pavilion will have 6,000-square-meter exhibition space to house the Dynamic Macao campaign, which is designed to showcase Macao’s global image and introduce the city’s economic development, trading ties with Portuguese-speaking countries, cultural and hospitality industries and tourism attractions. One matching event will pair businesses in Fujian, Macao and Portuguese speaking countries to promote economic ties.

Sponsored by the Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute, Dynamic Macao is committed to helping small and medium-sized companies gain access to the mainland market. More than 120 companies from Macao will put 1,000 specialty products on display, ranging from coffee, wine and souvenirs, to household products and art works.

Dynamic Macao will host a string of networking events to increase cooperative opportunities between Macao businesses in the tourism, leisure and other sectors. The events will put a particular emphasis on youth entrepreneurship and innovative star-ups, according to Liu Guanhua, an executive member of the Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute.

Approved by China’s State Council, the CIFIT is the only trade fair that promotes both inbound and outbound investment in China.

To facilitate the country's opening-up, government officials, economists, and company representatives are invited to the 2016 International Investment Forum, which opens today in tandem with the 19th CIFIT, to exchanges views regarding developing open economic systems.

The 19th CIFIT will also convene a meeting of China's policy makers to listen to recommendations for improvements to the business environment from representatives of 50 multinational enterprises and business associations, according to the organizing committee.

A number of well-known figures will attend this year’s CIFIT, including Wang Jianlin, China’s richest man and the chairman of Wanda Group, who will give speeches at CIFIT’s International Investment Forum.

More than 30,000 prospective investment projects are expected to be showcased to participants at 3,000 presentations and business matching activities during this year’s CIFIT.