China's import expo bolsters Belt and Road cooperation

Smoother delivery 

In the auto exhibition area, the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) is attending the CIIE for the second time. By the third day of the expo, its high-end lubricating oil had already won the recognition of many Chinese purchasers and secured some new business partnerships, said Wu Weigang, sales manager of the company's Chinese agent.

According to Wu, during the second CIIE in 2019, the company established good relations with China's COSCO Shipping. Since the beginning of this year, COSCO Shipping has overcome the impact of COVID-19 and ensured the smooth shipment and delivery of oil products to China.

"The BRI has brought ADNOC closer to China, and the CIIE has provided a broader stage for the company to deeply explore the Chinese market," said Wu.

Deeper exchanges

Abikunda Samuel, the commercial counselor at the Embassy of Rwanda in China, said that previous participation in the CIIE has helped Chinese consumers learn more about Rwanda's famous products, such as chili oil and coffee, which he said is "the best coffee of the world."

Some Rwandan brands have caught up with China's e-commerce trend in collaboration with well-known live-streaming hosts. "Once, we sold some 3,000 packs of coffee within one second, and we hadn't even prepared that much stock," he recalled with laughter. "That was a huge surprise."

In addition to introducing commercial products, Samuel said that attending the expo has another mission. "We take this opportunity of the CIIE to create more awareness about our country in China," he said, pointing to the posters on the pavilion's walls showing mountain gorillas, a national treasure of the East African country.

"Many people say that gorilla-trekking in Rwanda is actually a life-changing experience, something you can never forget," he added.

Long-term business ties established between China and Rwanda through the CIIE have created many job opportunities for Rwandan farmers, and thus benefited the country's economy as a whole, said Samuel.