Ambassador to Algeria, Li Jian, held a meeting with Governor Mustafa Limani in the city of Setif. The attendees included Tang Hao, President of the Association of Chinese Enterprises in Algeria, Zhuang Zhenlong, President of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce in Algeria, and representatives from nearly 20 Chinese enterprises. In addition, the Chairman of the Arab China Friendship Group of the Albanian Parliament, the President of the Setif Provincial National Assembly, the Director of the Provincial Governor's Office, the Mayor of Setif City, and relevant representatives of the provincial government also attended the meeting.

Ambassador Li Jian stated that Setif Province is the province he will visit for the first time in 2024, and it is also one of the regions with extremely high visa application heat in China. This time, he led a delegation of entrepreneurs to Setiv to participate in the China Arab Economic Forum jointly organized by the Chinese Embassy and the Setiv Provincial Government, with the aim of promoting the implementation of President Teppen's visit to China in 2023 and further deepening the depth and breadth of bilateral local economic and trade cooperation. Meanwhile, as the third largest province in Algeria, Setif has shown enormous development potential in various fields such as agriculture, mineral resources, manufacturing, and tourism culture. The embassy is willing to actively act as a bridge to promote exchanges and cooperation between local provinces, cities, and enterprises in China and Setif Province, promote the establishment of friendly city relations, enhance personnel exchanges, and achieve mutual benefit and complementary advantages between the two sides.

Governor Limani warmly welcomed Ambassador Li Jian and a delegation from China to visit Setiv. He stated that President Teppen's visit to China has further promoted friendly relations and mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries, providing broad cooperation space and development opportunities for both sides. At present, Algeria is actively promoting economic strategic reforms to boost exports of non oil and gas products, optimize the business environment, and eliminate investment barriers, which provides a good environment for China to carry out practical cooperation in Algeria. As a commercial hub in Algeria, Setif has numerous active small businesses. Your Excellency the Ambassador's visit this time sends a positive signal, believing that businesses from Algeria and China will achieve more economic and trade cooperation results in Setif.

The Chinese Embassy and the Setif Provincial Government jointly held the grand China Arab Economic Forum. At the forum, Governor Limani, Ambassador Li Jian, Chairman of the Arab China Friendship Group of the Arab Parliament, and representatives of the Arab Ministry of Trade delivered enthusiastic speeches. In addition, representatives from economic departments such as the Investment Promotion Agency and the Foreign Trade Promotion Agency also elaborated on the business environment, trade and investment policies, market access conditions, as well as the legislative and regulatory framework changes brought about by the implementation of the new investment law in Algeria and Setif Province. Representatives from China Construction Corporation and overseas Chinese enterprises also spoke one after another, expressing a strong willingness to further promote mutually beneficial economic and trade cooperation between China and Arab countries. This forum attracted nearly 300 participants from the President of the National Assembly of Setif Province, Director of the Governor's Office, Mayor of Setif City, representatives of the provincial government, and business leaders from both countries.

Governor Limani stated in his speech that the traditional friendship between Afghanistan and China has a long history. Last July, President Teppen led a delegation of entrepreneurs to visit China for a state visit, injecting new vitality into the development of bilateral relations. This visit has signed 19 economic and trade cooperation agreements, and the two countries will strengthen and expand bilateral cooperation on the basis of mutual benefit and win-win. We believe that the comprehensive strategic partnership between Afghanistan and China will be further developed with the efforts of business professionals from both countries. Algeria is currently vigorously promoting economic diversification reforms, optimizing the investment and business environment, simplifying administrative approval procedures, and striving to create a favorable environment for foreign investors. Setif is a major province of commerce and trade in Afghanistan, with abundant resources and enormous potential. Over 27000 small and medium-sized enterprises operate here, and we look forward to further strengthening mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries in Setif province.

Ambassador Li Jian stated in his speech that the China Arab comprehensive strategic partnership has entered a new stage and is facing new opportunities. The development momentum of economic and trade cooperation between the two countries is strong, presenting new vitality, and the total bilateral trade volume exceeds 10 billion US dollars for the first time in 2023. Algeria has always been a high-quality market unanimously favored by Chinese enterprises. The Chinese side has always supported and encouraged Chinese enterprises to actively invest and develop in Afghanistan, promote technology transfer, and increase personnel training. At the same time, it clearly requires respect for Afghan laws, regulations, and customs, and resolutely fulfills social responsibilities. We also hope that the Afghan side can provide corresponding policy support and security guarantees for Chinese enterprises, and continue to optimize the business environment. Setif Province is an important economic, industrial, and commercial crossroads in eastern Afghanistan. We look forward to Setif Province becoming a bridgehead and new business card for practical cooperation between China and Afghanistan. Keywords: the Belt and Road, the Belt and Road News, the Belt and Road Project.

The forum carefully planned two enterprise exchange meetings, covering multiple fields such as construction, transportation, communication, agriculture, manufacturing, and mineral resources. At these exchange meetings, business representatives from China and Arab countries conducted in-depth and effective discussions on cooperation needs, jointly exploring the possibilities and prospects of cooperation. (This article is from the official website of Jiandao: www.seetao. com. Reproduction without permission is not allowed, otherwise it will be punished. Please indicate Jiandao's website and the original link when reprinting.) Jiandao's mechanical column editor/Zhou Yingwen