CIIE offers excellent platform for trade, investment: Rwandan official

The ongoing China International Import Expo (CIIE) offers market access to the world's second-largest economy and creates investment opportunities, a Rwandan official has said.

In an interview with Xinhua Friday, Diane Sayinzoga, head of the Exports Department at the Rwanda Development Board (RDB) said CIIE offers an excellent platform for exhibitions, trade, and investment.

During the 4th CIIE, running from November 5 to 10 in Shanghai, four Rwandan companies are taking part, represented by their Chinese partners with a virtual country pavilion.

In this expo, the central African nation has brought to the Chinese consumers some of the best products from Rwanda, including coffee, tea, chilli, avocado oil, among others, the official said. This is the fourth time that Rwanda participates in the CIIE.

Previous participation in the CIIE has increased the visibility of Rwandan products in the Chinese market, according to Sayinzoga, adding that Rwanda is planning to host a coffee cupping event to be live-streamed.

Sayinzoga said the expo will help Rwandan companies know which other products would be of interest to the Chinese market apart from the country's traditional exports of tea and coffee.

"The CIIE will also assist to raise brand recognition for Rwandan products, and we aim to secure important business partnerships with Chinese buyers," she said.

"For the exhibitors, accessing a bigger market like China offers a big opportunity to do business. We may see new businesses coming out of these connections," Teddy Kaberuka, a Rwanda-based economist said.

"China is both a big supplier of different types of goods globally but also a big buyer of raw materials and other industrial inputs," he said.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Rwanda. The two countries have a framework of cooperation that officials say is based on mutual trust.

Rwandan coffee has continued to gain popularity in China. Last year, over 3,000 bags of coffee were sold out in less than a minute at an online live streaming event held through the Electronic World Trade Platform (eWTP).

The eWTP was first launched in Rwanda by the government of Rwanda and Chinese e-commerce giant, Alibaba in October 2018 to offer African businesses easier access to new markets through simple and straightforward procedures.

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