Co-Host: Spain

Organizer: Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Trade

Executive Organizer: Spanish Institute for Foreign Trade (ICEX)

Supporter: Spanish Chamber of Commerce in China, South China Division

Delegation: 200 Spanish enterprises and organizations, headed by Mr. Miguel Sebasti¨¢n, Spanish Minister of Industry, Tourism and Trade, with a total attendance of 350.

Exhibition Scale: The Spanish Pavilion, which covered an area of 10,000 sq m, was divided into 4 zones, namely agricultural produce and food zone, consumer goods zone, industry zone and corporate services zone, More than 180 enterprises and 20 organizations from Spain participated as exhibitors, showcasing the country¡¯s high-tech and modernization.

Industries Involved:

£ª     Biotechnology, pharmacy, medical equipment, machine-tool, industrial components and materials, IT, energy, climate change and environment, engineering and architecture services, franchises, design, consumer goods, agri-food, education, tourism, etc.

Related Activities:

£ª     China-Spain SME Summit: With China-Spain cooperation on SMEs as its theme, the Summit invites high-ranking government officials, economists and entrepreneurs from China and Spain to discuss on SME cooperation and development.

£ª     China-Spain SME business matchmaking: Chinese enterprises participated in the business matchmaking with Spanish exhibitors at a ratio of more than 3:1. More than 1,000 Chinese enterprises attended the matchmaking, which turned out to be a great success. According to the survey by the Spanish side, nearly 80% of the Spanish exhibitors felt satisfied with the business matchmaking.

£ª     Seminars and presentations: In order to demonstrate the Spanish national image, specialized shows in the fields of science and technology, architecture, food and tourism, together with 12 seminars on the Spanish economy were held in the Spanish Pavilion by the Spanish organizer.

£ª     Signing Ceremony: During CISMEF 2009, China and Spain signed an agreement of cooperation in the fields of industry, telecommunications and Information technology, and a memorandum of understanding of cooperation on SMEs.

Cooperation Process

£ª     From September 22 to 25, 2008, Spanish enterprises participated in CISMEF 2008. During the Fair, a delegation formed by officials from ICEX and the Spanish Embassy visited CISMEF 2008 and held preliminary talks with the Secretariat of CISMEF Organizing Committee on the co-hosting of CISMEF 2009.

£ª     In October 9 to 18, 2008, a CISMEF delegation, led by Mr. Tong Xing, Vice Governor of Guangdong Province, visited Spain. During the visit, the delegation met with officials from the Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Trade and ICEX. Both sides held consultations reached consensus on many issues regarding the co-hosting of CISMEF 2009.

£ª     With the joint efforts of relevant authorities from China and Spain, the memorandum of understanding between China and Spain on co-hosting CISMEF 2009 was signed in Madrid. on the morning of October 28, 2008, by Mr. Huang Huahua, Chairman of CISMEF Organizing Committee, also Governor of Guangdong Province, and Mrs. Miguel Sebasti¨¢n, Spanish Minister of Industry, Tourism and Trade.

£ª     During the visit of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao to Spain from January 30 to 31, 2009, the Joint Statement between the Government of the People¡¯s Republic of China and the Government of the Kingdom of Spain on Further Deepening China-Spain Comprehensive Strategic Partnership was issued in Madrid by both sides, explicitly expressing in Item 2 of Article 3 that ¡°China is ready to work together with Spain to ensure the success of the 2009 China International Small and Medium Enterprises Fair, and make it a platform for closer cooperation between the SMEs of the two countries¡±. This was the third time for CISMEF to be included in joint statements between China and the co-host countries, following the statements with Japan and the Republic of Korea, which showed the great emphasis laid by China and other countries on the development of SMEs.

£ª     On the afternoon of February 17, 2008, Mr. Wu Feng, Deputy Director-General of Guangdong Provincial Economic and Trade Commission met with Mr. Ignacio Mezquita, Commercial Counselor of the Spanish Embassy to China, and others in the Commission. Both sides held consultations on issues regarding the co-hosting of CISMEF 2009. The meeting was also attended by officials of the Department of SMEs, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Secretariat of CISMEF Organizing Committee.

£ª     On March 27, 2009, the Briefing on CISMEF 2009 and the Hall for ASEM SMEs Cooperation and Exchange was held in Beijing, where Mr. Ignacio Mezquita, Commercial Counselor of the Spanish Embassy to China, representing the co-host country, was invited to briefing the audience on preparations of the Spanish Pavilions.

£ª     In early April, 2009, Mr. Yang Yang, Director-General of the Bureau of CISMEF led a delegation to visit Spain for the promotion of CISMEF 2009. Three briefing were held in Madrid, Valencia and Barcelona respectively. Mr. Zhu Bangzao, Chinese Ambassador to Spain attended and addressed the Madrid briefing. He held that the co-hosting of CISMEF by China and Spain would further promote the bilateral economic and trade cooperation and hoped Spanish enterprises would showcase the advantageous products, technologies and equipment and secure the China market through the participation in the exhibition.

£ª     On the afternoon of May 20, 2009, Mr. Juan Miguel M¨¢rquez, Director for Promotion of ICEX and Mr. Juan Manuel Ortega, Commercial Consul of Spain in Guangzhou visited the Secretariat of CISMEF 2009 for consultations on issues regarding the co-hosting of CISMEF 2009. Mr. Yang Yang, Director-General of the Bureau of CISMEF and other officials from the Secretariat attended the meeting. The Spanish delegation visited the Exhibition Center after the meeting.

Status Quo of Spanish SMES:

£ª     One of the distinctive features of the Spanish economy is the huge number of SMEs, which are an irreplaceable force in the Spanish economy. According to the Spain Association of SMEs (PYMES), nearly 2.7 million SMEs absorb approximately 80% of the country¡¯s total workforce, higher than the EU average, 65.8%; SMEs account for over 98% of the total Spanish enterprises. In spite of their small size, they enjoy rapid development. During the period from 1995 to 2000, the number of small businesses and their employment had increased by 14% and 16% respectively in Spain, compared with 7% and 6% in the EU at large.

£ª     At present there are 710 Spanish enterprises of various kinds in China, among which 69 specialize in agri-food, 33 in consumer goods, 169 in raw material process, industry and equipment manufacturing, and 439 in services. Many large Spanish corporations have their branches or offices in China, such as Nutrexpa, Gallina Blanca, Telven, Acciona, CIE Automotive, Fermax, Gamesa, T¨¦cnicas Reunidas, Alsa, Famosa, Lladr¨®, Panrico y Roca, El Pozo, Efabind, Tapizado, and Frajumar M¨¢rmolles Sierra la Puerta.