On the morning of October 18, the 2026 Central Asian Regional Economic and Trade Cooperation (Changsha) Fair opened in Changsha. The fair was themed "Strengthening East-Central-West Interaction to Promote Central Asian Economic and Trade Cooperation." It aimed to build a pragmatic collaboration platform between Hunan and Central Asia, and push forward the high-quality Belt and Road cooperation. More than 300 participants attended, including government officials, diplomatic envoys in China, and representatives of business associations and enterprises from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, and other countries, as well as representatives from provincial and municipal departments, financial institutions, and leading enterprises within the province.

Project matchmaking was a major highlight of the fair. A list of 66 cooperation projects was released on site, covering two major categories: investment collaboration and bidding procurement, involving countries such as Kazakhstan, Georgia, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, and Mongolia. The projects spanned mineral resource development, renewable energy, low-altitude economy and digital technology, and environmental protection engineering, offering more cooperation opportunities for enterprises to expand into the Central Asian market.

Leveraging the institutional innovation advantages of the Changsha Area of the China (Hunan) Pilot Free Trade Zone and Hunan's industrial foundation, the fair will further connect Hunan's competitive industries with the market demand of Central Asia. It will introduce Central Asia's distinctive mineral, agricultural, and livestock resources to explore a new industrial chain cooperation model of "Central Asian resources + Hunan intelligent manufacturing," building a regular exchange and cooperation platform linking China's eastern, central, and western regions with Central Asia for economic and trade partnership.

Li Minqiang, deputy secretary of the CPC Working Committee and director of the Administrative Committee of the Changsha Area of the China (Hunan) Pilot Free Trade Zone, introduced that the Changsha Area has produced a total of 117 institutional innovation achievements, 15 of which are at the national level. It has formed industrial ecosystems in construction machinery remanufacturing, biomedicine, and cross-border e-commerce. Going forward, the area will enhance cooperation in six key areas: construction machinery and remanufacturing; biomedicine and medical devices; infrastructure and engineering construction; energy, minerals, and modern agriculture; cross-border trade and logistics services; and mutual recognition of standards and comprehensive services. It will provide full-chain services in trade, finance, legal affairs, standards, and talent for Hunan enterprises going to Central Asia and Central Asian enterprises investing in Hunan.

This article is from the Hunan Provincial Government www.enghunan.gov.cn.

Translator: Yu Jiangjiang

Chinese source: hunan.gov.cn