APEC SME Business Forum 2022 held in Shenzhen

The APEC SME Business Forum 2022 was held from Dec. 21 to 23 in Shenzhen, south China’s Guangdong Province, under the theme “Take the Path of Being Specialized and Innovative, Cultivate New Dynamic Energy for Inclusive and Sustainable Development in Asia-Pacific Region”.

The forum played an important role in implementing the proposals put forward by Chinese President Xi Jinping at the 29th APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting. It featured a main forum and eight parallel forums, and was available both online and offline in Shenzhen and Beijing.

Government officials, representatives from institutions, business associations and research institutes, as well as entrepreneurs from small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from 11 APEC member economies were invited to attend the forum.

During the forum, guests discussed topics such as pushing the development of SMEs toward a specialized, sophisticated, new and unique direction, digital empowerment, integration of industry and education, Chinese enterprises going abroad, innovation and entrepreneurship, low-carbon and green development, advanced manufacturing and high-quality development.

Xu Xiaolan, Vice Minister of Industry and Information Technology, Wang Xi, vice governor of Guangdong Province, Qin Weizhong, mayor of Shenzhen and Supattanapong Punmeechaow, Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy, delivered speeches at the forum’s opening ceremony.

The Asia-Pacific region has the most energetic economy in the world. It enjoys great potential and economies in the region have close cooperation, Xu said. She put forward three proposals to promote the inclusive and sustainable development of SMEs in the region.

The first proposal is to support these enterprises to develop toward a specialized, sophisticated, new and unique direction; the second proposal is to build a platform to promote pragmatic cooperation among the SMEs; the third is to enhance communication and coordination in policy making and improving the business environment for SMEs.

Taking this forum as an opportunity, Shenzhen will stay committed to building a first-class business environment that is market-oriented, law-based, and international, Wang said. Enterprises from APEC member economies are welcome to strengthen economic and trade cooperation with their counterparts in Guangdong and share in the enormous opportunities brought by the burgeoning development of the Greater Bay Area, he added.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, Indonesian Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan, Singapore’s former ambassador to the United Nations Kishore Mahbubani, and other guests delivered keynote speeches at the forum via video link, putting forward policies and measures to support SMEs achieve innovative and specialized development.

At the opening ceremony, the China Centre for Promotion of SME Development, the Industry and Information Technology Bureau of Shenzhen Municipality, and the Bao’an District People’s Government signed a strategic cooperation agreement on the long-term hosting of the APEC SME Business Forum in Shenzhen.

The annual forum has been held in Shenzhen for four consecutive years since 2018, bringing together high-quality international cooperation resources and giving a strong boost to the innovative and specialized development of SMEs in the city.