Upon an invitation from the Chinese Government, His Excellency Ahmad Al Sayed, Minister of State and Chairman of QFZA, led a delegation from Qatar Free Zones Authority (QFZA) to the China International Import Expo (CIIE) 2019, held in Shanghai this week. The exhibition was opened by the Chinese President Xi Jinping and attended by a number of international leaders and CEOs of global companies.

As part of the visit, the delegation attended the Hongqiao International Economic Forum, which covered topics including free trade, e-commerce and the development of artificial intelligence.

On the sidelines of the second edition of the CIIE, QFZA signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Lin-gang Special Area of Shanghai Free Trade Zone (FTZ), which  aims to expand cooperation between the two entities, including knowledge-sharing initiatives, investment promotion fairs and activities, and streamlined trade and customs procedures. The MoU builds on previous agreements with Chinese FTZs, as well as discussions in Doha between QFZA and a visiting Shanghai delegation including the Secretary General of the Standing Committee of Shanghai Municipal People’s Congress.

QFZA delegation accompanied by Qatar’s Ambassador to China – Mr. Mohammed bin Abdullah Al Dehaimi met with H.E. Chen Yin, Deputy Mayor of Shanghai government, and a wide range of leading Chinese technology companies in fields of artificial intelligence and internet of things (IoT) to help build smart cities. Meetings like these are closely aligned with QFZA’s mission to promote the development of smart cities in Qatar, including through deployment of smart technologies within Qatar Free Zones.