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| Vice-Premier Meets APEC SME Delegates |
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WED, AUG 29, 2001
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Chinese Vice-Premier Wu Bangguo met with the heads of delegations from APEC member economies to the 8th APEC SME Ministerial Meeting (APEC SME) at Shanghai's International Convention Center Tuesday afternoon.
Wu expressed a warm welcome to the guests. He said the Chinese government will continue to push forward economic and technological exchanges and cooperation among small and medium- sized enterprises (SMEs) of the member economies of the Asia- Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).
The Chinese government attaches great importance to the reform and development of SMEs as they play an irreplaceable role in the country's economic and social development, he said.
At present, SMEs account for 99 percent of the total number of enterprises in China, producing about 60 percent of the country's industrial output value and about 40 percent of its tax revenue. They also provide jobs to 75 percent of the urban employers around China.
Wu said that improving the innovative capacity and promoting the healthy growth of SMEs would be of great significance to achieving the country's development goals set for the next five years, sustaining economic growth and social stability, meeting the all-round social needs, creating job opportunities and improving the socialist market system.
In a new century of fresh opportunities and challenges, the Chinese government will take further effective measures to resolve the prominent problems in the development of SMEs, building a service system for them and creating a better environment for their development, he said.
The government will guide SMEs to become specialized in their business operations and forge cooperative ties with large companies so as to develop sound division of work and cooperation between various trades, while helping them improve their innovation capability and competitiveness for healthy development.
Wu urged SMEs to adapt to the requirements of the socialist market system, improve their own quality, standardize their operations and be honest in providing services.
The vice-premier stressed that advancing economic and technological exchanges and cooperation is a major part of the efforts to strengthen exchanges and cooperation among APEC member economies, which is all the more important as far as the uncertainties in the global economic development is concerned.
He said China cannot obtain sustainable economic growth without the support and cooperation of other APEC member economies. On the other hand, the further growth of the Chinese economy and China's accession to the World Trade Organization will provide an increasingly open market and more business opportunities for the other APEC members.
The Chinese government welcomes SMEs from the other APEC member economies to invest in China and carry out exchanges and cooperation in various forms.
Huang Ju, secretary of the Shanghai Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China, attended the meeting.
Also present were President of the APEC SME Ministerial Meeting and Minister in charge of the State Economic and Trade Commission (SETC) Li Rongrong, Head of the Chinese Delegation to the meeting and Deputy Minister in charge of the SETC Zhang Zhigang, and leading officials in the Shanghai city government.
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