On May 17th, 2023, a promotion conference for the sixth China International Import Expo (CIIE) was held in Kigali, Rwanda. WANG Xuekun, Chinese Ambassador to Rwanda, Hon. Nelly Mukazayire, Deputy CEO of Rwanda Development Board, along with Mr. Song Shangzhe, Deputy Director General of China International Import Expo Bureau, Mr. Wang Jiaxin, Chinese economic and commercial counselor to Rwanda, as well as local enterprise representatives attended the conference.
Ambassador WANG commented at the conference that as the first import-themed national-level expo in the world, CIIE aims to help foster a new cooperative platform built by China for countries worldwide to expand economic and trade relations and tap the Chinese market, as well as a significant measure for China to further promote the “Belt and Road” Initiative and the proposal of “Building a Community with Shared Future for Mankind”. In the past five expos, Rwandan coffee, tea and chili products were showcased with fruitful outcomes. Rwandan enterprises successfully found opportunities for exploring and entering the Chinese market.
In recent years, bilateral trade between China and Rwanda is registered steady and fast growth. As one of Rwanda’s largest trading partners for ten consecutive years, China encourages more Rwandan enterprises to participate in the CIIE and export featured products to China, with granting duty-free treatment for imported goods originating from Rwanda that cover 98 percent of the tariff lines, which will definitely create more favorable conditions to comprehensively deepen the win-win trade and economic cooperation between the two countries.
Ms. Nelly Mukazayire on behalf of the Rwandan government and people expressed sincere gratitude for China’s consistent support to Rwanda in the fields of economy and trade development. She spoke highly of Rwanda-China trade cooperation, saying that the CIIE is one of the most important cooperation platforms for Rwandan enterprises exploring and entering the Chinese market. She believed bilateral tangible cooperation in various fields will surely push bilateral long-term friendly partnership to a higher level.
Mr. SONG Shangzhe said, CIIE has brought together featured Rwandan goods during the last few sessions and played an active role in promoting the prosperous development of trade and economic exchanges between China and Rwanda. The Expo is willing to provide support and assistance for more Rwandan enterprises and high-quality goods to successfully enter the Chinese market.
The sixth China International Import Expo (CIIE) will be held from November 5th to 10th, 2023, jointly sponsored by the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China (MOFCOM) and Shanghai Municipal People’s Government, organized by China International Import Expo Bureau and National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai) Co., Ltd.. This year’s Enterprise&Business Exhibition under the Expo includes six major areas, “Food and Agriculture Products”, “Automobile”, “Intelligent Industry & Information Technology”, “Consumer Goods”, “Medical Equipment & Healthcare Products” and “Trade in Services”. Since 2018, CIIE has been successfully held for five consecutive sessions, with significantly improved quality and efficiency, and a wider international impact, which is a major platform to give firm support to trade liberalization and economic globalization and actively open the Chinese market to the world. (End)