The Second China-Arab States Economic and Trade Forum: A Fruitful Event

Inland Opening Stimulates

Wang Zhengwei told China Today that Ningxia is determined to carry out the inland opening strategy, taking advantage of the platform of the China-Arab States Economic and Trade Forum. The autonomous region is planning to set up a special economic zone or a new district once approved by the central government. Either way, it is good news for Ningxia, and it is feasible and necessary to set up a special economic zone or a new district.

Ningxia has stood out as a link between China and the Arab world for centuries and there is a longstanding tradition of the Hui people being active in cross-continental business and trade. This is one of the reasons that the central government designated Ningxia as the permanent venue of the China-Arab States Economic and Trade Forum. Furthermore, recently the cooperation between China and Arab countries has been intensifying and spreading into different fields. Ningxia plays a significant role in the ties between China and Arab states and will be an essential player in strengthening those ties.

The Ningxia Huanghe (Yellow River) Riverine Economic Zone has been listed as one of 18 national key development zones and included in the 12th Five-year Plan (2011-2015) of the National Economic and Social Development. The Yellow River is often cited as the cradle of Chinese civilization. But, as home to a large number of ethnic minorities, the riverine area in Ningxia is still underdeveloped. The development of this area is vital to quality of life, environmental health and industrial development in Northwest China.

Setting up an inland special economic zone is of great significance here, both promoting the regional economy and the development of west China. As part of this, a bonded area, a free-trade zone and a duty-free zone will be established in Ningxia to draw investment from domestic and overseas businessmen and enterprises.

China has witnessed remarkable achievements over the past three decades, starting by opening up coastal areas and then border cities to the outside world. Now it is time to open inland areas and areas inhabited by ethnic minorities in compact communities.

Regarding the significance of establishing an inland economic zone in Ningxia, Wang Zhengwei pointed out that as the Arab and Islamic world has a population of 1.5 billion in 57 countries, and the Muslim economy is worth US $2 trillion per year, there is a huge market potential for the economic zone. Strategically speaking, he added, relations with the Arab world are of utmost importance in terms of energy security, because 60 percent of China's oil supply is imported from Arab countries.

He also explained that the inland economic zone in Ningxia is unique in China because it is particularly geared towards benefiting the ethnic minority groups in the region. We cannot ignore the fact that the region has achieved some progress over the past few decades, but it still lags far behind the eastern regions in China. A special economic zone in the western region will be of more long-term significance than that in the coastal or eastern regions, as it will help achieve balanced development nationwide. This makes Ningxia a key region to realize China's development goal of creating a prosperous society across the nation by 2020.

Finally, the inland special economic zone aims to develop local characteristic industries, new materials, new pharmaceuticals, new energy resources, halal products, services, logistics, entertainment and tourism, and light and textile industries. Participants from Arab countries showed great interest in these fields, including Qatar Prince Sheikh Abdul-Aziz Jasim Al-Thani, who expressed his intention to invest in Ningxia when inspecting the cashmere and halal industries. The promotion of these industries is important to achieve adjustments in the industrial structure of western regions and other regions populated by ethnic minorities in China. It will consequently help local people gradually become more affluent and help Ningxia keep up with the pace in development nationwide.

Brimming with Opportunities

According to Wang Zhengwei, this year's forum was of a larger scale and higher standard than the previous one.

This year, the forum was attended by three national leaders and five princes from Arab states, and all 22 member countries of the Arab League sent delegations, making up just part of the attendance of over 8,400 people. More than 2,100 enterprises joined the delegations, among which 900 were foreign enterprises. Notably, Jia Qinglin, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), delivered an important speech at the forum.

Through the forum and showcase of Ningxia, Arab states had a chance to better understand China's reform and opening-up policy, urban and rural development and the country's autonomous regions.

The forum attracted investment of RMB 207 billion for a wide variety of industries, including energy, textiles, education and tourism, which bodes well for Ningxia's adjustment of its industrial structure and change of development model. Some Arab friends suggested building a China-Arab industrial park and China-Arab trade and logistics center.

According to Wang, the forum is not merely about doing business with Arab states, but also about establishing a platform to communicate and exchange ideas and knowledge. Confronted with the international market, what Ningxia needs most of all are experts in certain fields. Ningxia introduced more than 50 talented people, including academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering, and famous scholars at home and abroad, and signed agreements on cooperative education programs with many colleges and universities in Arab states.

Full of Confidence about the Future

The forum consisted of four parts (summit forum, exhibitions, trade negotiations, and cultural exchanges) and attracted important and successful figures from a variety of areas. Many ministers from Arab states achieved a better understanding of the trends of China's policy by attending the forum. They noticed that China's opening-up policy has brought the benefits gained in eastern coastal areas to western regions. They highly praised changes in the regions inhabited by ethnic groups, where the people are on the way to prosperity. "The forum is an opportunity to promote China's image," said Wang.

Last year, in order to attract exhibitors, stands were rent free, but there were still empty stands during the forum. This year, the forum brought in a company to manage the exhibition stands, each with a rent of RMB 5,000. To everyone's surprise, the supply fell short of demand.

The forum has also extended its scope to other fields like education, tourism and culture. "The forum was intended to offer a platform for trade and business, however, it is also important to propel the development of education, tourism and culture," said Wang.

In Wang's opinion, in the future the forum should focus on comprehensive economic and trade cooperation that satisfies the needs of different Arab states. With the ever-increasing international competition and dependence on economic balance, the forum needs to constantly improve and adapt.

"We are halfway to a good beginning, and the promising China-Arab States Economic and Trade Forum has a great potential that is yet to be tapped. With its development in the coming years, the forum will inarguably bring benefits to China and Arab states. People in Ningxia are full of confidence about the future of the forum," Wang concluded.