Expo 2017 Astana to house special exhibit dedicated to eastern Chinese economic powerhouse, its growing commercial advantages and resources

Shandong province will participate in the Expo 2017 Astana from Sept 6 to 8 and stage a Shandong Week to display the province's innovations in the energy sector, as well as share its experience in energy utilization and technological development to enhance cooperation with countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative.

The news was announced during a press conference held for a special press tour by Asian media organizations by the head of the information office of the publicity department in Shandong's capital city of Jinan on July 3.

Expo 2017 Astana, with a theme of "Energy of the Future", kicked off on June 10 and will end on Sept 10. There are 115 countries and 20 international organizations participating in the event.

Shandong province will take full advantage of the expo platform to boost economic and trade cooperation, as well as to promote business negotiations and cultural exchanges, said Ma Guangwei, deputy director, Legal Affair Department, Shandong branch of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade.

According to an implementation plan released by the province, Shandong Week will be mainly composed of three parts: activities, exhibitions and performances.

The event is expected to hold more than 10 major activities and several supporting activities in Astana and Almaty, including a promotional fair for B&R cooperation, the "All Products in Shandong" activity, the Shandong Tourism Cooperation Conference and the International Construction Materials and Kazbuild Exhibition.

In addition, Shandong Week will highlight the characteristics of Shandong's most promising cities. The last two days of Shandong Week will be designated Qingdao Day and Dongying Day, to showcase Qingdao's functions as a hub city and Dongying's rising reputation as an oilfield city.

Major cities in Shandong, including Jinan, Weihai, Dezhou, Liaocheng and Binzhou, will take part in a commodities expo. Dezhou, Liaocheng and Binzhou will hold investment seminars with Kazakhstan's investors.

Exhibitions of two of Shandong's major brands - Hoping Shandong, for local leading products, and Friendly Shandong for local sceneries - will be displayed during the event, according to Ma.

As a warm-up activity for Shandong Week, the province held a special event for media organizations from South, Southeast and Central Asia to visit Shandong from June 3 to 8.

During the week-long event, journalists and reporters were shown some of Shandong's most promising businesses involved in solar power, wind power, oil equipment manufacturing, wine making and heavy-truck production and assembly in three Shandong cities - Jinan, Dongying and Yantai - allowing the visitors to learn more about the industrial and economic development of Shandong.

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(China Daily 07/14/2017 page12)