On 29 December 2021, at the invitation of Hebei Provincial Department of Commerce, Mr. Guo Chuanwei, Director of the Trade and Investment Division of the ASEAN-China Centre (ACC), attended the RCEP & Hebei Series Activities Launching Ceremony via video link.

Mr. Chen Yanbao, Deputy Director-General of the Hebei Provincial Department of Commerce, Ms. Wantana Tatan, Minister Counsellor of the Embassy of Thailand in China, Mr. Glenn Peñaranda, Commercial Counsellor of the Embassy of the Philippines in China, and other guests attended the event and delivered speeches. Over 3,000 representatives from the Foreign Affairs Office of the Hebei Provincial Government, CCPIT Hebei Sub-council, China Customs, China-Asia Economic Development Association and Hebei’s leading import and export enterprises joined the launching ceremony online and offline.

Deputy Director-General Chen Yanbao said Hebei Province has close people-to-people exchanges and a sound foundation for economic and trade cooperation with RCEP member states, which opens broad prospects for bilateral trade and investment. In order to grab the new opportunities of RCEP, Hebei Province will provide the best business environment for foreign organisations and enterprises, and actively guide local enterprises to accelerate their integration into the regional development under RCEP. Hebei Province looks forward to exploring cooperation opportunities and embarking on a new journey toward mutual benefit and win-win cooperation with RCEP member states.

Director Guo Chuanwei pointed out that over the past 30 years, ASEAN-China cooperation has yielded remarkable outcomes in various fields. The implementation of RCEP will expand ASEAN-China cooperation and promote long-term prosperity and sustainable development in the region. The RCEP & Hebei series activities will help Hebei Province embrace new opportunities brought by the implementation of RCEP, and promote the in-depth cooperation between ASEAN countries and local industries and enterprises of Hebei . It also accelerates the building of a comprehensive and multi-level cooperation pattern, and helps to form a promising momentum of integrated development and benefit sharing.

Representatives of the embassies of RCEP member states attending the event expressed their expectation to further strengthen economic and trade cooperation with Hebei Province under the RCEP framework. Counsellor Wantana Tatan said Hebei Province plays an important role in the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (BTH) region, and this event will create an excellent opportunity to enhance trade and investment ties between Thailand and Hebei Province. Counsellor Glenn Peñaranda pointed out that Hebei Province is the Philippines’ 10th largest trading partner among all the provinces in China. On the occasion of the RCEP’s entry-into-force, he looked forward to further deepening the bilateral exchanges and cooperation in the fields of trade, investment and public health.

After the launching ceremony, experts from CCPIT Hebei Sub-council, Shijiazhuang Customs and China-Asia Economic Development Association interpreted for the attendees such subjects as the rules of origin under RCEP, certificate application, and the United Nations’ procurement and customs clearance. The event also witnessed the recruitment ceremony of the first FTA seed trainers in Hebei.