Expat talents' contribution to China acknowledged

German visitors to the Conference on International Exchange of Professionals at the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center yesterday.

THE two-day Conference on International Exchange of Professionals (CIEP) rolled up its curtain yesterday at the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center, highlighting the contributions to the nation by foreign experts over the past four decades.

The conference opened Saturday featuring a diverse array of events, including high-end forums, job fairs, exhibitions and international innovation and entrepreneurship contests.

The CIEP has attracted massive attention from experts, scholars and local and global jobseekers. Nearly 100,000 people attended the conference over the past two days.
Former German President Christian Wulff recently sent a letter to the organizer to congratulate them on the CIEP's successful opening. He pointed out that such a major event could certainly further China's exchange of talents, technologies and trade with other areas and countries.

In his letter, Wulff addressed that Germany and China have been maintaining active exchange and communication on professional talents in recent years, which has played a vital role in deepening the cooperation between the two countries.

This year, the CIEP set up the Exhibition of Achievements of Foreign Talents and Intellects Introduction to celebrate the 40th anniversary of China's reform and opening up.

A total of 49 projects involving the contributions of foreign experts were selected from across the nation and showcased at the exhibition in Hall 1 of the convention and exhibition center in Futian CBD.

A project from Shenzhen-based BGI, on the research and production of a gene sequencer, was among the exhibited projects and represented the city's efforts in introducing top-notch foreign talents.

In addition, this year's CIEP also selected the 40 Most Influential Foreign Experts from the 40 Years of China's Reform and Opening Up to acknowledge their contributions in many fields, such as science and technology, agriculture, the arts, business and academics.

Lee Yuan Xiang, an expert in economics originally from Singapore, was among the 40 most influential foreign experts. He currently is the deputy CEO of Ping An Insurance Group, headquartered in Shenzhen.

Lee has been actively involved in the reform and development of the insurance and health-care sectors since moving to China in 2000, bringing along and adapting the advanced insurance systems from overseas to China's markets.

The other experts acknowledged included Henry Lee, an Asian-American forensic scientist, Professor Isabel Crook, a Canadian linguist who previously taught at Beijing Foreign Studies University, and Nikolay Dushin, an ophthalmologist from Russia.
Most of the experts are also recipients of the Certificate of Friendship award by the State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs (SAFEA).

The CIEP was founded by the SAFEA in 2001 with the approval of the State Council. It is China's only conference oriented toward foreign expert organizations, training institutions and professionals.

The CIEP has been hosted by SAFEA and the Shenzhen Municipal Government in Shenzhen since 2007.

Job fairs attract expats and overseas returnees

Returned overseas students at a matchmaking event in Hall 4 of the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center yesterday.

A SPECIAL job fair, aimed at recruiting foreign talents, was held at the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center on Saturday. The job fair was a parallel event of the 16th Conference on International Exchange of Professionals, which was held over the weekend.

Grace Chung, a Korean-American from the United States, was one of the foreign jobseekers at the fair. "I'm interested in finding international trade positions in China," said Chung, who is currently teaching and is looking to get back into the business world.

According to her, a lot of the jobs for foreigners were geared toward English teaching positions. "But there are a lot of opportunities here, so if you really do a little research it's possible to find a job," she said.

Attracted by China's thriving economy, Diego Garcia is also looking for a job here. Garcia is from Spain and is currently studying Chinese in Guangzhou. He had obtained a master's degree in electrical engineering before coming to China.

"Overall, I think the job fair is very well organized," he said. However, he thought the fair for foreigners was a bit too small.

"I expected it to be bigger, like one whole hall for foreigners. For me this is very small. I think they can work on bringing more companies that are looking for foreigners or aiming at foreigners," said Garcia.

According to Liu Yunlong, a consultant from human resources service provider HelloCareer, more foreigners were interested in positions related to sales and marketing at the fair, accounting for more than 60 percent.

In addition to the job fair for foreigners, a fair for returned overseas students was held concurrently in another hall at the convention and exhibition center.

At the scene, famous enterprises, such as Tencent, Mindray and Evergrande, were still the most sought after, as long lines could be seen in front of their booths.

Among the overseas returnees, most of the jobseekers had studied at universities in the U.S., the U.K., Australia or Hong Kong.

"I think the job fair provides a very convenient platform for graduates like me, as different kinds of companies are gathered together," said Li Rui, a student from Hong Kong Baptist University.

Shenzhen among most appealing cities to expats

SHENZHEN has taken fifth place on a list of the top 10 most attractive Chinese cities in the eyes of expats, according to a result released at the 16th Conference on International Exchange of Professionals (CIEP) in Shenzhen over the weekend.

Compared to last year's ranking, Shenzhen has advanced one place from the 6th spot. Shanghai, Beijing, Hefei and Qingdao are in the first four places.

The other five cities in the top 10 are Hangzhou, Suzhou, Chengdu, Nanjing and Guangzhou.

While Shanghai remains the most attractive city to expats for the sixth consecutive year, Chengdu makes its debut on the list this year.

The selection campaign has been co-conducted by the China Society for Research on International Professional Personnel Exchange and Development and International Talent magazine since 2010.

From November to February, the survey conductors collected 4,066 votes from expat professionals working in China and 25,494 online votes from foreign residents.

A special panel consisting of 68 high-end expat talents was also set up for the selection. The panel included four Nobel laureates, namely Dutch physicist Gerardus 't Hooft, Swiss and Israeli chemist Avram Hershko, Israeli chemist and material scientist Danny Shechtman and Russian physicist Andre Geim.

The results were announced by Lu Ming with the Ministry of Science and Technology on Saturday. "Falling in love with a country usually starts with affection," said Lu after making the announcement.

"Currently, millions of expat talents are working and living in China. As they are experiencing the development of Chinese cities, they are also contributing to the changes in every city," said Lu.

The official added that the implementation of policies regarding working permits and visas for foreign experts in recent years has helped more expats come and stay in China while also helping the country improve in many aspects.

Source:Shenzhen Daily