Manama: The Kingdom of Bahrain has emerged the 1st GCC country to participate in the China High Tech Fair 2016.
The representatives from leading businesses from Bahrain took part in the China High Tech Fair 2016, which was inaugurated at the Shenzhen Convention & Exhibition Centre in the city of Shenzhen. The event was attended by senior government officials and representatives from the private sector, particularly technology companies, from China and around the world.
The Bahraini delegation, led by H.E Shiekh Hisham bin Abdulrahman Al Khalifa, Governor of Capital Governorate, was invited to participate in the China High Tech Fair 2016 by His Excellency Xu Qin, Mayor of Shenzhen following his visit to Bahrain in September. The fair is an annual event organised by several Chinese ministries and government agencies. The event highlights the latest trends in China’s high-end technology and plays an important role in the implementation of the national development strategies for China.
This year’s event runs between the 16th and 21st of November and includes a number of exhibitions, forums, and conferences. Nearly 3000 exhibitors from more than 50 countries and half a million visitors are expected to participate. Bahrain is the first country from the GCC to have a pavilion at the event, and visitors to the pavilion will be introduced to the Kingdom’s key economic achievements and competitive advantages.
“The Bahrain delegation’s participation in the China High Tech Fair 2016, and especially the fact that we are the first GCC to do so, reflects the size of our aspirations and our efforts to develop economic and investment relations with the People’s Republic of China,” Mr. Khalid Al Rumaihi, Chief Executive of the Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB), said.
“This is particularly important in key economic sectors where we feel that Bahrain has considerable competitive advantages such as the ICT sector. The China High Tech Fair is the most prominent high-end technology event in China. It will provide us with a platform to demonstrate our vision, achievements and the Kingdom’s attractive ecosystem to the global business audience, contributing to the attraction of quality investments in vital sectors and the creation high-quality jobs.”
“Being the most prominent high-end technology event on China’s level, the China High Tech Fair provides us with a platform to observe the latest trends in technology and high-end products as well as exchange ideas, experiences and visions with leading Chinese and global technology business figures,” Samer Aljishi, Managing Director of BFG International, said.
“The forums and meetings that take place within the event discuss some very important issues from environmental conservation, to manufacturing the most advanced equipment, to renewable energy. Our participation in the China High Tech Fair 2016 is a great way for us to take our economic and investment cooperation with China to a more advanced level in the future.”
The Bahraini delegation will also be attending several high profile technological events, business forums and a number of meetings with representatives from Shenzhen and Hong Kong. The delegation consists of senior officials from the Capital Governorate, the Ministry of Transportation and Telecommunications, the Bahrain EDB, Bahrain Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Company, Bahrain Airport Company, Osool and several representatives from the private sector.
In 2013, the EDB established an international office in China and opened an additional office in Hong Kong in 2016. These offices play a key role in promoting Bahrain in China and inviting delegations to visit the kingdom as part of the board’s strategy to attract foreign investments to Bahrain and to focus on targeted economic sectors that constitutes competitive advantage for Bahrain.
Non-oil trade between Bahrain and China was valued at around USD$1.8 million in 2015. Mechanical and electrical equipment, represent the largest imports to Bahrain, while chemicals were the leading exports to China that same year.
