Exhibition area of Futian, Shenzhen

Exhibition area of Yantian, Shenzhen

Several hundred people, including senior officials, corporate leaders from the high-tech sector and university professors, witnessed a simple but respectable opening ceremony at the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center yesterday, to launch the Eighth China Hi-Tech Fair.

The ceremony, attended by senior government officials, business leaders and professors, lasted no more than 20 minutes, reducing the elaborate formalities to the minimum. This left more time for industry insiders and the public to discover with their own eyes the meaningful part of the show -- the prospects of a better life brought by new technologies, like an intelligent community network showcased by LG that enables the grocery store to know that it is time to deliver milk to your home, since there is no milk in the fridge.

Exhibition area of Luohu, Shenzhen

Apart from Comoros' Vice President Idi Nadhoim, important officials at the ceremony included Chinese Vice Premier Wu Yi, Vice Commerce Minister Wei Jianguo, Guangdong Governor Huang Huahua and Shenzhen's Party chief Li Hongzhong.

Shenzhen Mayor Xu Zongheng delivered a compact speech, highlighting again the three focuses of the fair, namely innovation, protecting intellectual property rights, and promoting a recycling economy. "Shenzhen is the first special economic zone of China, and a high-tech-oriented city since its birth," the mayor said.

"We hope that the CHTF will exert a big influence on the growth of technologies based on wide exchanges between companies, universities and individuals."

All present at the ceremony turned towards the Chinese national flag and stood still as the national anthem was played.

A brilliant show of fireworks concluded the ceremony after Vice Premier Wu announced in one simple sentence that the fair was formally open.

Later, fourteen minister-level officials from 11 foreign nations, as well as their Chinese counterparts, donned traditional Chinese outfits and sang a friendship song at a gala show organized by the CCTV at the Splendid China theme park yesterday evening.

Editor: Donald