Egypt is participating in the 14th session of the China International Fair for Small and Medium Enterprises (CISMEF), which started in Guangzhou on 9 October and lasts until October 13, 2017.
Egypt participated in this fair in this exhibition through the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA). Its participation comes within the framework of strengthening the comprehensive strategic partnership between Egypt and China through cooperation in various fields of joint development and activating the results of the President’s visit to China in September.
The CISMEF is a global event involving many Arab and foreign countries. Through its annual sessions, it has been able to become a platform for international trade and exchange for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in China and abroad.
According to Nevine Gamaa, the authority’s participation in this fair and other international fairs is one of the tools of non-financial services provided by the system to the customers of small projects in Egypt, by seeking to develop the capabilities and skills of human resources working in this sector.
In addition to that, participating in the fair links and integrates the supply chain of small enterprises and develops skills in marketing within and outside the country. This is in order to identify the latest developments and discover new investments and business opportunities.
She added that the system supports the clients of the small and micro enterprises sector to participate in the activities of the Chinese fair, by providing technical and administrative facilities for the Egyptian exhibitors, in order to promote their products and open new markets and provide excellent opportunities for external contracting.
Gamaa stressed the importance of benefiting from the transfer of Chinese expertise related to SMEs, especially in the development of human and professional capabilities and developing the marketing skills of SME products in domestic and foreign markets.
Nevertheless, The authority studied the marketing opportunities of the Chinese market, to take into account the uniqueness and excellence of the Egyptian products presented, highlighting the difference from the Chinese counterpart, which relied on Egyptian raw materials and highlight the products of traditional industries that characterize Egypt.
She pointed out that the products of small enterprises participating in the Chinese exhibition varied to include office and home furniture, cosmetics, medicine, aromatic plants, leather products, wicker products, marble, products of North Sinai, copper, and papyrus, indicating that these products were presented through 18 pavilions allocated to SMEDA by the CISMEF.
This is the first time Egypt has participated and is represented by the SME Development authority at the 14th session of the CISMEF.
On the sidelines of the Fair, Gamaa met with the Executive Director of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), Philip Schultz, to discuss ways of joint interest between Egypt and the Organization. The officials also participated in the opening of the business meeting and presented the file of Egyptian companies wishing to cooperate with the Chinese side.
The fair also held an open dialogue with the Egyptian exhibitors in this exhibition, to identify the most important obstacles to their access to the global markets and the means of support that can be provided to them.
The Egyptian delegation, headed by Gamaa, participated in the second seminar on cooperation between Europe and Asia in the field of integrated support for the financing of medium and small enterprises.
During the seminar, the Egyptian Strategy Institute presented the strategy of supporting small, medium and micro enterprises and the role of the system in activating the system in an integrated manner, shedding light on the tools of financial coverage paid by the system, whether financial or non-financial, and its geographical and sectoral objectives, Spread among the republic, and the size of the financing portfolio.
