China-CEEC Expo Blossoms into Success

Wednesday 17 June 2015 12:20
As Ningbo's hosting of the first China-CEEC Investment and Trade Expo draws to a close, the city is celebrating the five-day event that planted the seeds of future success after it opened on June 8.

With the theme of "expanding opening-up and cooperation and jointly building the Silk Road", the China-CEEC Expo was held under the Belgrade Guidelines for Cooperation between China and the CEE countries, which was signed in Belgrade, Serbia, in December 2014.

The China-CEEC Expo was attended by thousands of government leaders and representatives of business enterprises from China and 16 CEE countries.

The five-day event saw a string of investment symposiums, trade exhibitions, business forums and cultural activities, which are expected to promote the cooperation between China and CEE countries in an all-round way, to expand Zhejiang province's international influence and to facilitate Ningbo's port economy.

Over 70 government departments and enterprises from CEE countries had in-depth talks with more than 200 government sectors, investment promotion institutions and companies at home on 132 cooperation projects featuring infrastructure, tourism, manufacturing, food and medicine at the China-CEEC Investment Cooperation Seminar.

The organizers also hosted a CEE specialty products fair, aiming at domestic buyers in China at the Ningbo International Convention Center. The fair was attended by a total of 201 enterprises from 16 CEE countries, exhibiting more than 3,000 kinds of products such as wine, honey, handicrafts and cosmetics.

In addition, 70,000-square-meter exhibition halls for the specialty products from some CEE countries, will start construction with a total investment of 4 billion yuan ($644 million), which is expected to attract more visitors and buyers from China and abroad, according to the organizing committee.

As the main part of the China-CEEC Expo, the China-CEEC Forum on Cooperation Development was attended by many government leaders from China and CEE countries to discuss how to strengthen cooperation between China and CEE countries under the background of the Belt and Road Initiative.

The Initiative was put forward by President Xi Jinping in 2013, with the purpose of rejuvenating the two ancient trading routes and further opening markets in a mutually beneficial manner.

Moreover, the organizers also held a large number of activities in an effort to increase the culture and tourism ties between the two sides.

The Ningbo city embraced the 2nd CEE Countries Contemporary Artwork Exhibition at the Ningbo Museum of Art, bringing together 74 oil paintings by 19 artists from 16 CEE countries. The artwork exhibition provides a common platform on which Chinese and Eastern European artists can have art exchanges and help both sides understand each other better.

A string of tourism cooperation agreements were signed between the two sides during the China (Ningbo) - CEEC Tourism Cooperation and Exchange Conference on June 10, promoting the bilateral tourism development.

All these activities and bilateral agreements are expected to provide a strong impetus to revive China's economy, trade, culture and tourism cooperation with the CEE countries along the Silk Road Economic Belt.

For more information:http://www.cceecexpo.org/site_en/index.html

http://english.ningbo.gov.cn/

SOURCE: Ningbo Municipal Bureau of News

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