The Zhejiang Provincial Department of Commerce hosts the launch ceremony for the 2020 Zhejiang-Africa Cloud Trade Fair in the provincial capital of Hangzhou on Nov 10. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The Zhejiang Provincial Department of Commerce hosted the launch ceremony for the 2020 Zhejiang-Africa Cloud Trade Fair in the provincial capital of Hangzhou on Nov 10.

Twenty-seven foreign guests from 20 African countries and international organizations, including the deputy permanent representative of the African Union to China and the ambassadors of Ethiopia, Lesotho, Namibia, Mauritius, and Rwanda to China, were invited to the event.

Among the Chinese participants of the event were officials from related government departments and Zhejiang branch managers of People's Bank of China, China Export & Credit Insurance Corporation, People's Insurance Company Group of China, and the Export-Import Bank of China.

According to a speech at the event by Sheng Qiuping, director of the Zhejiang Provincial Department of Commerce, Zhejiang has been continuously expanding exports to Africa in recent years. In 2019, the department set out a three-year action plan to push forward economic cooperation between Zhejiang and Africa, incentivizing Zhejiang enterprises to deliver products and invest in the continent. The Zhejiang-Africa Cloud Trade Fair is a digital exhibition aimed at promoting bilateral trade amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The event also featured a ceremony for donations of anti-pandemic supplies. Nine Zhejiang-based companies in the biotech, textile, and health sectors volunteered to donate their detection reagents, face masks, and other medical products to African countries currently battling the coronavirus.

The 2020 Zhejiang-Africa Cloud Trade Fair, which will run until Nov 15, has attracted 60 Zhejiang exporters and 100 companies from African countries such as Nigeria, Tanzania, Djibouti, Angola, Cameroon, and South Africa as potential buyers. The two parties will make use of an online platform to carry out business matchmaking.