Seminar on Trade Promotion in Portuguese-speaking Countries kicked off at Our School

      On the evening of November 11th, seminar on trade promotion for Portuguese-speaking countries, organized by the Ministry of Commerce of China and hosted by MOFCOM Training Base for International Business Officials (Shanghai), kicked off online.  Liu Beimin, consultant of Foreign Economic Cooperation Division of Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, and Chen Wei, Vice President of SBS College of International Education, attended the opening ceremony and delivered speeches.

      Liu Beimin pointed out that foreign trade is an important engine for promoting global economic development and a significant measure in China’s reform, opening up, and innovative development. Since 2018, the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries has accelerated its construction, and also speeding up are the construction of trade zones, the internal demand for infrastructure and the free flow of trade in Portuguese-speaking countries. Driven by a series of effective measures,  China’s foreign trade is growing year by year and, in the context of the epidemic in 2020, even a ‘V’-shaped reversal trend appeared –not only the import and export volume exceeded forecast only, but also the historical record was refreshed. She expressed sincere hope that this seminar would positively contribute to the promotion of trade cooperation between China and the Portuguese-speaking countries.

       Chen Wei said the recent success of the 4thImport Expo in Shanghai is a major initiative of the Chinese government in a firm support to the free trade and economic globalization, opening its market to the world and establishing a platform of open cooperation for international trade. MOFCOM Training Base for International Business Officials (Shanghai) will make good use of the accumulated experience and resources, to share by means of this seminar, the successful practices and experiences of China, especially those of Shanghai, in promoting trade development and cooperation, and to inject new vitality into the construction of Shanghai Trade Center.

     Mr. Luis Cassandra Piredo des Santos,Chairman of the Sao Tome and Principe Equality Foundation, expressed his sincere gratitude to the organizer and host of this seminar. He believed that since the implementation of the ‘Belt and Road’ initiative, China has formulated a number of competency-building actions for various fields in Portuguese-speaking countries,  shared its experience and disseminated the latest knowledge, helped to promote the economic and social development of the countries along the route.

       The 14-day seminar was attended by 42 government officials and business executives from 4 countries–Brazil, Cape Verde, Mozambique and the Sao Tomé and Príncipe. It aimed to cultivate talents in the trade field for Portuguese-speaking countries, further expand the communication and exchanges between China and Portuguese-speaking countries in trade field, and promote various forms of mutually beneficial cooperation.

Written by Guan Rui

Photographed by Shi Xiaomei

Reviewed by Chen Wei