KUNMING, China–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The online exhibition of the 2021 South and Southeast Asia Commodity Expo and Investment Fair (SSACEIF) was launched in Kunming, Yunnan Province on August 25, 2021. The event is based on the theme “New Opportunities for New Development” and will run until August 29.

Qiu Jiang, Vice Governor of Yunnan Province, said that since the first SSACEIF was held in Kunming in 2017, the event has spurred regional development and cooperation across South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Indian Ocean Rim region, supporting the Belt and Road Initiative through extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits.

In 2021, SSACEIF has shifted to an online format, aiming to provide enterprises from all over the world with an effective platform for economic exchange, cooperation on COVID-19 and economic recovery, and to promote the in-depth integration of industrial chains, supply chains, and value chains across countries, thus helping to create mutual benefits and a prosperous future.

Foreign delegates that delivered speeches via video noted that the process of ratifying and implementing the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is accelerating, and that amidst joint efforts to overcome the pandemic, countries in the region need to work together to speed up economic recovery. Speakers also called for all members to make full use of the exhibition platform and new SSACEIF initiatives to promote win-win outcomes.

At the launch ceremony, guests were updated on the latest progress in construction of the China-Laos Railway via video streaming. They also witnessed the launch of a trial train at Lincang Station in the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor, as well as the signing ceremony for a pilot regional administration for cross-border animal diseases, and a provincial operating platform for China-Laos International Freight Trains.

Attendees at the launch ceremony included Kunming-based consul generals and consuls of Cambodia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand.