On May 30, the Briefing on Exhibition Invitation and Buyer Recruitment for the 16th CISMEF (China International SME Fair) was held in Guangzhou. Wu Hong, deputy director of the Secretariat of CISMEF Organizing Committee and deputy director-general of the Department of Industry and Information Technology of Guangdong Province, attended the briefing and gave an update on the work progress and features of exhibition invitation and buyer recruitment for the 16th CISMEF. He Zuoxian, director general of the Bureau of CISMEF, hosted the briefing.

The 16th CISMEF is jointly hosted with Malaysia and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). Apart from China, there will be 35 countries and regions, as well as international organizations, including 14 countries along the Belt and Road, attending the exhibition, which will run from June 26 to 29 in Guangzhou. It will be the first time for three countries, Fiji, Uruguay, and Ethiopia, to attend the exhibition. In total, there will be 2,568 booths, including 1,316 booths for provincial and municipal pavilions, 1,062 booths for overseas pavilions, and 190 booths for cross-border e-commerce pavilions.

For the first time, the "Specialized, Fine, Peculiar, and Innovative" Pavilion will be set up, which includes 1,050 booths where the latest quality development achievements of more than 1,000 outstanding SMEs throughout China will be exhibited. Special activities will also be organized for the "Specialized, Fine, Peculiar, and Innovative" Pavilion.

The Innovative Service Pavilion wills also be set up for the first time, which includes 266 booths. A total of 211 exhibitors will launch activities about investment and financing services, pre-listing tutoring, product releases, enterprise roadshows, and technology exchanges. Malaysia, as the co-host country, has a pavilion covering 1,500 square meters, which includes 50 participating enterprises mostly from the industries of specialty food, cultural tourism, and educational services.

In terms of buyer recruitment, there are 6,000 professional buyers that have registered for participation. In addition, 10,000 Guangdong enterprises will also be organized by Guangdong province to participate in the exhibition for procurement negotiations. During the exhibition, 10 supply-demand matchmaking activities will be held, covering smart manufacturing. Three targeted business matchmaking activities for China-foreign SMEs and business promotion conferences for foreign countries and regions will also be hosted. Featured activities, such as the Thailand Food Festival, Fijian folk dance, and Nepal performances, will be organized in the overseas pavilions.

Tang Kam Tim, counselor of CISMEF in Hong Kong, as well as Chen Haiquan, dean of Guangdong Asia Pacific Institute of Electronic Commerce and full-time executive president of Guangdong General Chamber of Commerce, attended the briefing and introduced relevant updates regarding the fair.

On behalf of the Ministry of Economy of the UAE, which was the co-host country of the 15th CISMEF, Rahma bin Abdul Rahman Al Shamsi, consul general of the United Arab Emirates in Guangzhou, sent his Letter of Congratulations to wish the 16th CISMEF a great success.