By Du Yifei, People’s Daily
The seventhChina International Import Expo (CIIE) will be held in Shanghai from November 5 to 10. The total contracted exhibition area has reached 366,000 square meters, and more than 2,000 companies from over 100 countries and regions have confirmed their participation so far.
Over 70 countries and international organizations are scheduled to join the Country Exhibition, including first-timers such as Norway, Slovakia, Benin, Burundi, Madagascar, and the United Nations Children’s Fund(UNICEF). Free exhibition booths will be provided to exhibitors from 35 least developed countries, to facilitate the entry of their unique products into the Chinese market.
As the world’s first national-level import-themed expo, the CIIE has seen an expanded “circle of friends” over the past seven years. It has served as a window for fostering a new development pattern that creates new opportunities for the world through China’s further development, and as a platform of high-standard opening-up that allows China’s enormous market to be shared by the world, providing shared international public goods and services that facilitate an open world economy.
The vibrant annual CIIE has become more and more attractive to global exhibitors. Deus Nuwagaba, chief operating officer of the Uganda Coffee Farmers Alliance, has been preparing for the seventh CIIE, as thecoffee harvest season arrived in Uganda.
On a coffee plantation on the slopes of Mount Elgon in eastern Uganda, where coffee trees spread out in a lush and green expanse, Nuwagaba was overseeing the purchases and sales of coffee beans. “I’ll bring these coffee beans to China!” said Nuwagaba.
The CIIE has become a prominent platform for innovation, with a wide range of new products, cutting-edge technologies, and high-quality services making their debuts every year. For instance, at the sixth CIIE last year, a total of 442 new products, technologies, and services were launched, offering splendid exhibitions for the global audience.
It is reported that this year, the expo’s technology and equipment exhibition area will, for the first time, feature a new materials sectionto accelerate the development of new quality productive forces. Fortune Global 500 companies and industry leaders from the United States, Japan, Germany, Singapore, Brazil and Italy, among others, as well as “hidden champions”that lead global niche markets, have confirmed to join this new section.
During the first CIIE in 2018, Medtronic, one of the largest medical device companies in the world, exhibited the world’s smallest cardiac pacemaker that weighs only about 2 grams, garnering widespread attention.
Medtronic has participated in the CIIE for six consecutive years, presenting over 300 innovative products and treatments, including more than 50 debut products. Over 10 innovative products and treatments have transitioned from exhibits to traded goods.
Alex Gu, senior vice president of Medtronic, said thatChina’s vast population and the government’s focus on public health indicate enormous potential in the Chinese market.
He noted that Medtronic has always been optimistic about the Chinese market and firmly believes that China will become the world’s largest medical market and aninnovation hub for medical technologies.
“Leveraging the platform of the CIIE, Medtronic is rapidly bringing innovative products to the Chinese market, while enhancing its local research and production capabilities and developing the value chain in China,” Gu said.
The seventh Hongqiao International Economic Forum, an important part of the CIIE, themed “High-Standard Opening up for Universally Beneficial and Inclusive Economic Globalization,” will include a main forum and 19 sub-forums.
Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), a world leader in container shipping, has participated in the CIIE multiple times and has been operating and investing in the Chinese market for over 20 years with expanded business scope.
According to Soren Toft, CEO of MSC, the world economy today still faces many uncertainties. China is committed to open cooperation and creating a better economic and trade environment, providing crucial support for the stability and smooth flows of the global industrial and supply chains.
Toft said that the high-level international exhibitions such as the CIIE, Canton Fair, and China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) held by Chinahave provided mutually beneficial cooperation platforms for enterprises from various countries. This demonstrates China’s determination to expand opening-up and contributes to global economic recovery and development.
The CIIE is China’s major initiative to still widen market access to the rest of the world and a concrete action by China to advance an open world economy and support economic globalization.
By making the pie of opening up bigger and the list of cooperation longer, China will continue to achieve its own development through open cooperation, thereby making greater contributions to global economic stability and prosperity.
Visitors learn about a pulsed field ablation (PFA) system launched by Medtronic at the sixth China International Import Expo (CIIE), November 6, 2023. (Photo by Weng Qiyu/People’s Daily Online)
Ugandan coffee is exhibited at the sixth China International Import Expo, November 8, 2023. (Photo by Weng Qiyu/People’s Daily Online)
Photo taken on November 5, 2023 shows the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai), the main venue for the sixth China International Import Expo. (Photo by Wang Chu/People’s Daily Online
Spanish ham is exhibited at the sixth China International Import Expo, November 7, 2023. (Photo by Weng Qiyu/People’s Daily Online)
进博会：为各国企业搭建互利共赢的合作平台
人民日报记者 杜一菲
乌干达东部埃尔贡山，大片的咖啡树郁郁葱葱。
又一个咖啡收获季到了，乌干达咖啡农组织首席运营官德乌斯·努瓦加巴最近一直在山里的咖啡农场，忙着新一季咖啡豆的收购和销售。
“今年我要带着这些咖啡去中国参加进博会。”努瓦加巴说。
像努瓦加巴一样，每年11月到中国赴一场“进博之约”，成为许多人共同的期待。作为世界上首个以进口为主题的国家级展会博览会，7年来，中国国际进口博览会的“朋友圈”越来越大，已成为中国构建新发展格局的窗口、推动高水平开放的平台、全球共享的国际公共产品。
第七届进博会将于今年11月5日至10日在上海举办。截至目前，第七届进博会企业参展签约面积36.6万平方米，已有100余个国家和地区的超2000家企业签约参展。国家展共有70多个国家和国际组织确认参展，其中，挪威、斯洛伐克、贝宁、布隆迪、马达加斯加等国及联合国儿童基金会首次参加国家展。此外，第七届进博会将为35个最不发达国家的企业提供免费展位，以推动这些国家的特色产品进入中国市场。
进博会历来是新品首发和前沿科技汇聚的首发地。在已成功举办六届的中国国际进口博览会上，每年都有全球新产品、新技术和新服务轮番登场。去年举办的第六届进博会，集中展示了442项代表性首发新产品、新技术、新服务，为观众带来一场场精彩展出。
据悉，为加快发展新质生产力，今年进博会将在技术装备展区首设新材料专区。目前确定在新材料专区“首秀”的，有来自美国、日本、德国、新加坡、巴西、意大利等多个国家的世界500强和龙头企业，此外还有一些细分行业的“隐形冠军”企业。
在2018年举办的首届进博会上，美敦力展出的重量仅为2克的全世界最小的心脏起搏器引起广泛关注。作为进博会的“老朋友”，美敦力已连续6届参展，先后带来超过300款创新产品及疗法，其中包括50余款首秀产品；10余款创新产品和疗法实现从“展品变商品”。
美敦力全球高级副总裁顾宇韶表示，拥有庞大的人口基数以及政府对人民健康的重视等，都让中国市场蕴含巨大潜力。美敦力始终看好中国市场，并坚信中国将在未来成为全球最大的医疗市场和全球重要的医疗科技创新发源地。“依托进博会平台，美敦力众多全球创新产品加速落地中国，本土研发制造能力不断增强，在华价值链布局全面推进。”顾宇韶说。
作为进博会重要组成部分的第七届虹桥国际经济论坛，以“坚持高水平开放，共促普惠包容的经济全球化”为主题，将举办主论坛和“1+4”板块19场分论坛。
地中海航运公司已多次参加进博会，进入中国市场20多年来，公司不断扩大经营和投资规模。在该公司全球首席执行官索伦·托夫特托夫特看来，当前世界经济仍面临诸多不确定性，中国坚持开放合作，营造更好经贸环境，为全球产业链供应链稳定畅通提供了重要保障。托夫特表示，中国举办的进博会、广交会、服贸会等高规格国际展会，为各国企业搭建互利共赢的合作平台，彰显了中国扩大对外开放的决心，有助于促进世界经济复苏和发展。
举办进博会是中国主动向世界开放市场的重大举措，也是中国推动建设开放型世界经济、倡导普惠包容的经济全球化的实际行动。把开放的蛋糕做大，把合作的清单拉长，中国将继续在开放合作中实现自身发展，为全球经济稳定和繁荣作出更多贡献。
2023年11月6日，第六届进博会上，参观者在美敦力展台了解全球首展的脉冲场消融系统。 翁奇羽/人民图片
2023年11月8日，在第六届进博会国家展的乌干达展台，参展商展示月亮山咖啡。翁奇羽/人民图片
2023年11月5日，第六届进博会举办地国家会展中心（上海）现场人头攒动。王初/人民图片
2023年11月7日，在第六届进博会现场，西班牙伊比利亚火腿吸引参观者驻足品尝。翁奇羽/人民图片
