The CAEXPO Fast-tracks Guangxi’s Opening-up and Development

Tang Qi

More than 20 years ago， at the historic moment of China’s accession to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia and the inception of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area （CAFTA）， the China-ASEAN Exposition （CAEXPO） and the China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit （CABIS） were launched in Nanning， Guangxi. Since then， the CAEXPO and the CABIS have turned into a spring breeze， nurturing Guangxi’s soil of political mutual trust， the forest of economic and trade cooperation， and the dialogue of cultural exchanges. Thus， fruitful results of the opening-up and development have been achieved by Guangxi and shared by all people.

Sounding a new clarion call in Guangxi’s opening-up and development

Openness is a distinct symbol of present-day China， as well as the surest way for Guangxi to develop and progress. In the overall plan of China’s opening-up and development， Guangxi has shouldered a significant historical mission， becoming a highlight of the ambitious blueprint.

Within the context of the unfailing construction of the CAFTA since 2002， Guangxi successfully earned the hosting rights to the CAEXPO in 2004 for its unique geographical advantage of connecting China and ASEAN countries by Beibu Gulf， as well as the ASEAN-oriented strategic plan for opening-up and development. From then on， the hibiscus flower-like exhibition hall， a symbol of the CAEXPO， has “bloomed” annually in Nanning， breaking new ground in Guangxi’s opening-up and development.

During the Two Sessions in March， 2015， Chinese President Xi Jinping endowed  Guangxi with a new mission of “Three Major Roles，” namely to develop Guangxi into an international corridor opening to the ASEAN region， a new strategic anchor for the opening-up and development of the southwest and mid-south regions of China， and an important gateway connecting the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road. This marked a new chapter of Guangxi’s opening-up and development.

While visiting Guangxi in 2017， President Xi noted that Guangxi’s growth potential and momentum lie in opening-up. In October， 2022， when Xi participated in the Guangxi delegation’s discussion at the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China， he expressed the hope that Guangxi would “achieve greater breakthroughs in serving and integrating into the new development paradigm，” once again pointing out the direction for Guangxi’s development in the new era.

Guided by Xi’s words， Guangxi has always regarded ASEAN as the primary and strategic focus of its opening-up and cooperation， reinforced economic and trade cooperation with ASEAN countries， and devoted great energy to promote cooperation platforms and major projects. Meanwhile， the CAEXPO and the CABIS convened for 19 consecutive years have become two of the most remarkable platforms.

Guangxi has boasted a total of 17 national open platforms by February 2022， gradually forming a multi-type， multi-level， and wide-range system of platforms for opening-up. With the spillover effects of the national open platforms， the region’s foreign trade grew by 22.2% in 2021， and foreign investment inflow reached 1.652 billion US dollars， which rose by 25.4% year on year.

Among them， national platforms and programs， including the China （Guangxi） Pilot Free Trade Zone （FTZ）， the New Western Land-Sea Corridor， the China-Malaysia Qinzhou Industrial Park， the Open Financial Door to ASEAN， the China-ASEAN Information Harbor， and the key pilot zones for development and opening-up along border areas， have vividly embodied Guangxi’s support for the regional cooperation with ASEAN countries.

As Guangxi keeps broadening and deepening opening-up， it has a new approach to remove all internal and external impediments to opening-up and development. For internal impediments， Guangxi has synergized national development strategies such as the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area， the Yangtze River Economic Belt， and the Hainan Free Trade Port， advancing interconnected development between the Beibu Gulf Economic Zone and the Greater Bay Area. Meanwhile， to clear up external impediments， Guangxi has also deepened cooperation with the ASEAN countries as well as countries and regions along the Belt and Road， seized such major opportunities as the upgrading of the CAFTZ and the implementation of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership （RCEP）， and thus cultivated new driving forces for economic growth.

With actions to overcome internal and external obstacles， Guangxi will ride on the train of the CAEXPO and speed on the path of opening-up and development， continuously developing the Chinese path to modernization.

The important engine for Guangxi’s opening-up and cooperation

Nowadays， the train of the CAEXPO and the CABIS has been running for 19 yeas but still accelerating， driving Guangxi’s opening-up. Through the train window， we can clearly see Guangxi’s opening up and development have been improved in leaps and bounds.

Over the past 19 years， the CAEXPO has built bridges for ministerial-level consultations， as well as dialogues between government officials， entrepreneurs， experts， scholars， and well-known figures from all walks of life， building the “Nanning Channel” for China-ASEAN cooperation in multiple fields.

Fueled by the CAEXPO， a batch of projects have been set up， including the China-ASEAN Technology Transfer Center， the China-ASEAN Multimodal Transport Alliance， and the China-ASEAN Education Training Center. They not only leverage their foundation in the Chinese market to expand into the ASEAN market， but also radiate RCEP regions and the Belt and Road countries， promoting mutual cooperation and exchanges in fields of trade， investment， cultural exchanges， and technological cooperation.

In addition， as a platform for opening-up， the CAEXPO is continuously advancing the launch of numerous open platforms. For example， the upgrade and development of the CAEXPO are making the Guangxi FTZ become the ASEAN-oriented international investment and trade pilot zone. The exhibition value chain built by the China-ASEAN Business and Trade Center has extended influences of the CAEXPO on China-ASEAN economic and trade cooperation even after the event rings down the curtain. At the same time， Guangxi continues to add more substance to the upgraded Sino-Malaysian “Two Countries， Twin Parks，” the Fangchenggang International Medical Opening-up Pilot Zone， and other platforms in various fields.

It is worth mentioning that with the combination of the exhibition and the summit， the CAEXPO has set up various theme exhibition areas and distinctive events to display the panorama of Guangxi’s opening-up and development， allowing the audience to see the entire Guangxi in just one venue.

At the previous CAEXPO， there were characteristic exhibition booths presenting the New Western Land-Sea Corridor， the Beibu Gulf International Gateway Port， the Guangxi Pilot Free Trade Zone， and the Sino-Malaysian “Two Countries， Twin Parks.” Additionally， the Guangxi FTZ Promotion Conference， the industry cooperation meeting for the Greater Bay Area and Beibu Gulf Economic Zone， and the central and local governments matchmaking conference on key industry cooperation attracted a large attendance. All of these are the gratifying achievements of Guangxi’s opening-up and development.

Advertised in the exhibitions， Guangxi specialties have prevailed in ASEAN countries. Over the past 20 years， the CAEXPO has helped Wuzhou Liu Pao tea and Hengzhou jasmine tea scent overseas. Liuzhou Luosifen， Nanning Laoyou Noodles， and Guilin Rice Noodles have captured the hearts and stomachs of many ASEAN customers. “Made-in-Liuzhou” new energy products have made an eye-catching appearance at the CAEXPO， adding more possibilities to Guangxi-ASEAN cooperation in the automobile market.

Looking back， the CAEXPO has opened up a new future for Guangxi’s opening-up and development and built a fast track for the region to “go global.”

The 20th CAEXPO sprouts new fruits

The year 2023 marks the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative， as well as the 20th anniversary of the CAEXPO and the CABIS. This year， with the theme of “Work Together for a Harmonious Home and a Shared Future — Promoting  High-quality Development of the BRI and Nurturing New Epicenter of Growth，” the CAEXPO and the CABIS will have a series of conferences and forums to promote high-level opening-up and improve advanced open platforms.

It is reported that during the CAEXPO session， a number of economic and trade events will be orderly prepared， such as the 20th CAEXPO Thematic Side Event with the theme of “Institutional Opening-up for New Regional Economic Growth，” the 3rd RCEP Economic and Trade Cooperation Business Summit， and the 1st China-ASEAN Blue Economy Forum， which work towards new heights in opening-up and cooperation.

At the same time， in order to promote the opening-up and development of Guangxi， related economic and trade activities of “Invest China — Embracing Guangxi” will be held during the summit， which focuses on showing the business environment of China and Guangxi， as well as trade and investment opportunities on the online “Invest China” platform of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade （CCPIT）. Field visits to Guangxi’s cities and counties， the multinational companies investment tour to Guangxi， and other events will be organized concurrently.

Moreover， special exhibition areas such as “Guangxi International Sister Cities at CAEXPO” will also be featured at the 20th CAEXPO. By displaying the exhibits and images of the international sister cities in a concentrated manner， it will integrate the resources and further promote economic and trade cooperation and exchanges between Guangxi and its international sister cities. As of now， Guangxi has established 128 pairs of sister cities with 39 countries， ranking 4th in China. It also tops the country， for its 59 sister cities come from ASEAN countries.

Except for the exciting domestic opening-up activities， the CAEXPO also extends its platform across border for foreign exhibitors to seek business opportunities together. Prior to the 20th CAEXPO， its overseas exhibitions in Singapore， Laos， and Malaysia have provided targeted matching services for exhibitors and participants and built a convenient and efficient professional platform for Chinese enterprises， especially Guangxi enterprises， to enter international markets.

As a poem goes， “A favorable wind can give one a leg up，” the orchard of opening-up and development is thriving in Guangxi by virture of the breeze of the CAEXPO and the CABIS. And here comes the harvest season.