KUNMING: China’s Vice Prime Minister Wang Yang has expressed Chinese willingness to help the South Asian countries in the fields of energy, telecommunications and road infrastructure on build, operate & transfer basis and through public-private partnership by pursuing zero tariff regime on 95 per cent of trade for less-developed countries in South Asia.
Wang Yang said this while addressing the inauguration ceremony of the 2nd China-South Asia Exposition.
Minister for Science and Technology Zahid Hamid represented Pakistan on the occasion. Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajid, Nepalese Prime Minister Sushil Koirala, Vice President of Maldives Mohammad Jamil, Deputy Speaker of Sri Lanka, SAARC general secretary and representatives of other countries also attended the ceremony.
3,188 indoor exhibitor booths were divided into 10 display areas. About 100 Pakistani booths established at the expo attracted lots of visitors. Other countries from South Asia and South-East Asia also participated in the exhibition.
Referring to the efforts of Chinese government to develop the connectivity between South Asia countries, Chinese vice prime minister said that the China had launched Karakorum Economic Corridor with Pakistan, while another parallel economic corridor was being launched to boost trade between India, Bangladesh and Myanmar with China. He said that Karakorum economic corridor reflects the commitment of the Chinese government to the development and progress of the peoples of regional states.
“Our cooperation with our neighbours has a greater level of cooperation in the fields of trade and development,” he said, adding that the aim of the exhibition was to boost interstate connectivity. He said that the Chinese investment in South Asian countries was being raised by 48 per cent every year.
Bangladeshi Premier Hasina Wajid said that she firmly believed that the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar economic corridor was a very encouraging development and once implemented it would go a long way in bridging the peoples of the region together.
In his remarks, Nepalese Prime Minister Koirala hoped that China would play its role as a major world power to bring progress and development in South Asian region. He said his country seeks massive Chinese investment in its human resources development. He sought that greater cooperation to enhance telecommunications, agriculture, trade, railways, industry and infrastructure building. He said that China also aimed at technology transfer and scientific research and joint laboratories would be established besides providing training to the scientists of South Asian and South East Asian countries.
Maldives Vice President Mohammad Jamil praised China’s generosity for development of Maldivian people which he said was unparalleled. He urged the Chinese investors to invest in Maldivian abundant resources of tourism and minerals. He recalled that the per capita income of Maldives was highest in South Asia but after the 2004 Tsunami, it was now opening up its resources for foreign investors.
Hasina Wajid said that the road connectivity was feasible enough and now there was a growing demand that the connectivity between the regional countries be reinforced through rail and railway links. She hoped that China could also help Bangladesh in fighting poverty, terrorism, climate change and other challenges.
Following the inaugural ceremony, the exposition was opened for the people while the dignitaries also visited the booths. Kunming is the capital of southwest China’s Yunnan Province. With the theme of “expanding trade in services, boosting investment-centred cooperation, accelerating interconnectivity, and jointly constructing economic corridors,” it is hoped that the expo will form an important bridge for mutually beneficial cooperation between China, South Asia and Southeast Asia in the fields including economy, culture, transport and technology. The event replaced the South Asian Countries Commodities Fair, which was first held in Kunming in 2010.