On December 10th, the International Forum on Free Trade Zones Development 2021 was held in Nanjing, Jiangsu province. Gao Yan, Chairperson of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), Fei Gaoyun, Vice Governor of Jiangsu, Xia Xinmin, Acting Mayor of Nanjing Municipal People's Government, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, Former President of the Philippines, and other guests delivered video speeches at the opening ceremony.       

Gao Yan noted that free trade zones represent the highest level of openness in the world and effective carriers for countries to gather various elements and integrate them into the global market. All free trade zones should promote institutional innovation, serve for the development of enterprises and strengthen exchanges to better play their roles. The construction of pilot free trade zones is an important measure taken by China to promote the Reform and Opening-up in the new era. Since 2013, China has set up pilot free trade zones in 21 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities. A large number of institutional innovations have been introduced, forming an economy with a new height of openness. CCPIT stands ready to work together with all parties to establish a more extensive cooperation mechanism, expand more multiple communication channels, build more effective service platforms, help enterprises seize opportunities of the development of free trade zones, advance openness and cooperation of global free trade zones, to make greater contributions to building an open world economy and a  human community with a shared future.      

This Forum is co-hosted by CCPIT, Jiangsu Provincial People’s Government and World Free Zones Organization, and supported by the Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of China. Representatives from relevant government departments at home and abroad, international organizations, free trade zones, trade and investment promotion agencies and business chambers of commerce, and foreign diplomatic envoys to China, experts and scholars and enterprise representatives participated online or offline.