China (Guangxi) Agriculture Silk Road Journey—Press Conference in Malaysia （Press Release）

Group Photo from Left:

1. Deputy Financial Director of Tea Trade Association of Malaysia, Mr. Li Zewei
2. Director of Division of Rural Industrial Development of Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of Guangxi, Mr. Chen Zhenhua
3. Director of Malaysia International Food and Beverage Exhibition, Mr. Chen Zhixiang
4. Director of Division of Foreign Exchange and Cooperation of Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of Guangxi, Ms. Ou Yixia
5. President of Persatuan Guangxi Malaysia, Mr. Dato' Looi Hei Tyng
6. Deputy Director of Bureau of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of Wuzhou, Ms. Lin Ying
7. Secretariat of China-ASEAN Expo Department of Investment Trade, Ms. Liang Weiyi
8. Deputy Finance Director of Malaysian Tea Chamber of Commerce,  Mr. Li Zewei
9. Secretary-general of China (Guangxi) Tea Science Society, Mr. Huang Jiaqi

Kuala Lumpur , 24 June 2019 : In the second half of June, China (Guangxi)—Malaysia Negotiation Fair on Agriculture Investment and Trade Cooperation will be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Highlighting the theme of sharing, converging and win-win and three functions of “exhibition, recommendation, guidance”, the Promotion festival will include Guangxi – Malaysia Negotiation Fair on Agriculture Investment and Trade Cooperation, Guangxi Wuzhou Liupao Tea Promotion & Liupao Tea Appreciation Meeting, and Guangxi Fine Tea Exhibition.

1. China (Guangxi)—Malaysia Negotiation Fair on Agriculture Investment and Trade Cooperation. The Negotiation Fair will be held in Kuala Lumpur Convention Center, Malaysia in the afternoon on June 26. In order to promote a new round of high-level agricultural cooperation in Guangxi and encourage enterprises to invest in Guangxi, the People’s Government of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region issued a series of preferential policies for agricultural investment. On this fair, Guangxi organizes a batch of promising agricultural projects, including Liupao Tea top quality area, Momordica grosvenori modern industrial park, and agricultural products and food deep processing for key introduction and promotion, and invites a number of Guangxi enterprises interested in investment and development in Malaysia to negotiate. They will be looking for opportunities to invest in Malaysia in the aspects of rice, aquatic products, tea trade and storage, etc. For example, Guangxi Wuzhou Tianyu Tea Industry Co., Ltd. will cooperate with Jiumao Malaysia Co., Ltd. On the establishment of Jinma Tea Warehouse Tea Resource Trading Center in Malaysia, to promote the integration of tea professional warehousing, trading, financial, and culture, which will effectively facilitate the development of local industry and achieve the win-win situation. This event has received great attention and support from the governments and business associations of China and Malaysia and attracted many enterprises and media on both sides. At that time, the officials of Malaysian institutions such as the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation and the principal heads of business associations, the officials from the Chinese Embassy in Malaysia and the Guangxi government and other institutions, as well as more than 150 enterprises from Guangxi and Malaysia, will attend the meeting and negotiate on the cooperation. On the fair, contracts will be signed, covering 15 investment, technology and trade cooperation projects. Among them, the purchase of tea is worth nearly 200 million Yuan.

2.Guangxi Wuzhou Liupao Tea Promotion & Liupao Tea Appreciation Meeting. Appreciation Meeting will be held in Kuala Lumpur Convention Center in the morning on June 27. Chinese people have migrated to Malaysia hundred years ago and brought the tea culture into local life. For the generations of Chinese in Malaysia, Liupao Tea is business and also their love to hometown. On March 2017, Wuzhou cooperated with Malaysia again and started the “Ancient Road for Tea Ship-New Silk Road”-Sale of Liupao Tea to the World in Malaysia, and then in Thailand, Indonesia, Brunei, Sri Lanka, Japan, Korea and other countries and regions, which greatly improved the brand influence and popularity of Liupao Tea and made the Liupao Tea industry prosperous. So far, the total tea plantation in Wuzhou is more than 100,000.00 mu, with output more than 15,000 tons, which drives the development of the primary industry, the second industry and the service sector at the same time, and the comprehensive value of output is more than 5.5 billion yuan, with brand value reaching 2340 million Yuan. The Ancient Road for Tea Ship▪New Silk Road-Sales of Guangxi Wuzhou Liupao Tea to the World (Southeast Asia) will further enhance the understanding of new generations of Chinese and local residents toward Chinese tea culture and attract more consumers to enjoy Chinese fine tea.

3. Guangxi Fine Tea Exhibition in Malaysia. It will be held at the 20^th Malaysia International Food and Beverage Exhibition from June 26-June 28. In Guangxi, there are mountains everywhere filled with heavy mist, which is very suitable for the development of tea industry. Tea picking starts from February every year. The tea in Guangxi is known as “the best early spring tea in China”. Among them, the black tea is well-known for its rich, strong, fresh taste, bright red color, and pleasant fragrance, and Liupao tea gets very popular for its red color, aged scent, and rich and smooth flavor. Guangxi organizes nearly 40 Guangxi tea enterprises with more than 80 varieties of teas winning international and domestic tea awards, hoping that more Malaysian friends will know Guangxi’s tea, love Guangxi’s agricultural products, and bring Guangxi’s agricultural products to ASEAN and the world through the international platform, Malaysia with tea as the bridge and bond. Meanwhile, we hope to introduce Malaysia’s durian, jack fruit and other agricultural products that sell well in Malaysia to China and enable Chinese people to enjoy the delicious food.

China and Malaysia are always close to each other. Malaysia is the first ASEAN country that establishes diplomacy with China as well as the first country that responded to “One Belt One Road” initiative. Since ancient times, Guangxi and Malaysia have had a history of close exchanges. During the Jiaqing Period in Qing Dynasty, Wuzhou Liupao Tea has been sold to other Southeast Asian countries and regions including Malaysia through West River Golden Waterway, which makes Malaysia the second home of Liupao Tea. In April this year, Tea Trade Association of Malaysia returned to the hometown across the ocean with the long-history Liupao Tea, met friends over appreciating tea and continued the friendship. In the new times, with the implementation of One Belt One Road, Guangxi and Malaysia have tighter ties on trade and economic cooperation and personnel communication. The two parks in two countries become the start to establish industrial parks in the other party between China and ASEAN for mutual development, attracting more than 10 Guangxi agricultural enterprises to enter. The agricultural trade between Guangxi and Malaysia has been increasingly growing, reaching an all-time high of more than US$83 million in 2016 and remaining at a high level for the past two years.

Guangxi Province is the only one that is adjacent to ASEAN on the land and in the sea, the international channel for ASEAN, the new strategic stronghold for the open development of southwestern and mid-southern regions, as well as an important portal that connects sea silk road and economic belt on the silk road in the 21^st century. The investment in Guangxi is granted with five preferential policies, including opening-up policy along sea, border and river, Great West Development policy and regional autonomy policy. It can be said that Guangxi has the most favorable policies in the entire country. In recent years, Guangxi has been devoting to forming a first-class business environment, from optimizing “1+14”business policies to 55 actions to prospering and safeguarding private economy. A series of new policies about business and fund attraction that have been intensely issued by Guangxi make Guangxi a popular place for the development of private economy.

2019 is the first year that implements “2030 Vision of China-ASEAN Strategic Partnership” as well as the 45^th anniversary of China-Malaysia diplomacy. Both sides are now ushering in a new stage of friendship, and facing a new opportunity of deep cooperation. Malaysia and Guangxi, China face each other over the sea. They are similar to each other in climate and human culture, supplement each other in agricultural cooperation and have a huge space. It is beneficial to facilitate rapid and healthy development of bilateral agricultural economy and improve livelihood in the two countries by accelerating in-depth exchange and cooperation concerning agricultural technology, industrial integration, trade cooperation and personnel exchange.