Press conference for the first China Small and Medium Enterprises Fair

The fair's logo

The Chinese government will hold a national expo to amplify the voice of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs).

The first China Small and Medium Enterprises Fair is slated for Oct. 18-22 in Guangzhou, the capital city of Guangdong Province boasting booming private businesses, source from press conference Thursday (Jul 8) held in Beijing.

The fair will be held in fall every year from now on, says Wang Chunzheng, vice minister in charge of the economic policy maker, State Development and Reform Commission (SDRC).

The first fair, covering 40,000 square meters, will provide 2.200 display booths and attract participants like distribution companies, retailers, wholesalers, institutes of further education, research and development institutes, investment and intermediate agencies from home and abroad, as well as the United Nations' procurement agents.

The fair will also invite SMEs from Hong Kong and Macao, which have been enjoying the advantage brought by the implementation of the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) since the beginning of this year.

The fair will have two different exhibition zones for technical innovation and service industry. The technical innovation section will cover such areas as information, telecommunications, new materials, new energy, bio-pharmacy, advanced manufacturing, environmental protection, sustainable resources development and advanced processing of farm produce. The service industry section will feature financial guarantee service and products, corporate culture and training service, property management technology and products, logistic technology and technology.

As for products, five major categories will be displayed, including art and crafts, textile and garment, household necessities, hardware and electric household appliances, food and beverages.

Data:
Official statistics show that the number of SMEs registered in China had exceeded 3.6 million by the end of 2003. Another 27.9 million individuals are running their own household businesses in the country. These two categories account for 99.6 percent of the country's enterprises.

Though SMEs contribute to 55.6 percent of the country's GDP (gross domestic product) and provide over 75 percent of urban job opportunities, they are still facing with restrictions and obstacles in many respects, said Wang Chunzheng. Due to these factors, SMEs are still in a weak position in terms of access to information, technology, human resources, finance and market, according to Wang.

In order to better a policy environment that encourages SMEs to accelerate their expansion and enables them to compete with other enterprises on an equal footing, China has already promulgated the SME Promotion Law. The government is drafting some other relevant policies such as the Opinions on Promoting Development of Non-Public-Own Economy, Regulations on Management of Credit Guarantee for SMEs and Regulations on the Management of National SME Development Fund.

An official from the SME Department of the SDRC said the government has set two major tasks for promoting the development of SMEs, say development of a favorable policy environment and establishment of various systems of public service. This year, the government will focus on three key programs aiming to help SMEs to start business, obtain credit guarantee and improve personnel training.

The government will continue to strengthen the provision of public service to SMEs as training, assistance on starting business, guarantee of financing, technological innovation and transfer of technology, Xinhua news agency reported.

Editor: Donald