Exchange of Foreign Experts to be the Highlight of Shenzhen Career Forum

Xia Bing is director of the Information Research Center of International Talent under the State Administration of Foreign Experts. He says the highlight of the Conference is the exchange of foreign talent dubbed the Shenzhen Forum.

"There is currently no official forum for the exchange of professionals, so we created one and called it the Shenzhen Forum. We wanted to publicize that our government is encouraging foreign experts to come to China as well as encouraging Chinese professionals to go overseas. This year's theme is 'Integrate Global Intelligence and Work Together for Development'. It means that every country should focus on people's talents and knowledge. No matter if you are a developed, developing, or impoverished nation, people's talents are extremely important as every country can benefit from it. We want to make Shenzhen the center where exchanges of international professionals are happening."

Shenzhen's rags-to-riches story from a one time fishing village to a booming commercial city of over 14 million inhabitants is primarily due to the economic reforms initiated by the late Chinese leader, Deng Xiaoping. The city was designated as the first Special Economic Zone in China.

"The city naturally attracts job seekers as it truly is an immigrant city that welcomes people from all sorts of professions; whether you are a factory worker, white collar worker, researcher, professor, or student. Moreover, its geographic location serves as an advantage as it is so close to Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. For example, many Hong Kong investors first came to Shenzhen to break into the Chinese market."

The decision to make Shenzhen the permanent host city for the Conference reflects its position as one of China's most economically advanced and prosperous cities.

Wang Lei, CRI news.