The Conference on International Exchange of Professionals (CIEP) is an annual event held in

Shenzhen Shenzhen is a prefecture-level city in the province of Guangdong, China. A Special economic zones of China, special economic zone, it is located on the east bank of the Pearl River (China), Pearl River estuary on the central coast of Guangdong ...

, China. It is organized by the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology and

Municipal People's Government.

Annual conferences

''Domestic and international'': Each session of the CIEP has attracted professional organizations to participate in the exhibition from more than 40 countries and regions. Over the years,

Li Keqiang Li Keqiang ( zh, s=李克强, p=Lǐ Kèqiáng; 3 July 1955 – 27 October 2023) was a Chinese economist and politician who served as the seventh premier of China from 2013 to 2023. He was also the second-ranked member of the Politburo Standing ...

, Wang Yang,

Hu Chunhua Hu Chunhua (; born April 1963) is a Chinese politician. He currently serves as a vice chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference since 2023. From 2018 to 2023, he served as vice premier of China. Born in Yichang, Hubei, H ...

Zhang Dejiang Zhang Dejiang (; born 4 November 1946) is a Chinese retired politician who served as the chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress between 2013 and 2018. He was also the third-ranking member of the Politburo Standin ...

Li Yuanchao Li Yuanchao (born 20 November 1950) is a retired Chinese politician. He was the Vice President of China from 2013 to 2018 and the Honorary President of the Red Cross Society of China. He was a member of the Secretariat of the Chinese Communis ...

Ma Kai Ma Kai (; pinyin: ''Mǎ Kǎi'') is a Chinese retired politician who served as a vice premier of China from 2013 to 2018. He was formerly the chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission from 2003 to 2008, and a State Councilor and se ...

Cao Zhi Cao Zhi (; ; 192 – 27 December 232), courtesy name Zijian (), posthumously known as Prince Si of Chen (陈思王), was a prince of the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period of China, and an accomplished poet in his time. His style o ...

Huang Mengfu Huang Mengfu () is a vice chairman of the China People's Political Consultative Conference and chairman of the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce. He ranks as a national leader of China. Huang Mengfu is a grandson of former Chinese ...

Uyunqimg Uyunqimg or Oyunchimeg/Oyunqemag (, , ; December 1942 – 30 April 2024) was a Chinese politician of Mongol ethnicity. Between 2008 and 2013, she served as a vice chairperson of the Standing Committee of the 10th and 11th National People's Con ...

Edmund Ho Edmund Ho Hau Wah, GML, GCM, GOIH (born 13 March 1955) is a Macau politician who served as the first Chief Executive of the Macau Special Administrative Region from 1999 to 2009. He currently serves as a Vice-Chairman of the Chinese Peopl ...

, and

Hua Jianmin Hua Jianmin (born January 1940) is a Chinese politician. He served as state councillor and secretary general of the State Council, president of the China National School of Administration, and vice chairman of the standing committee of the 11 ...

have attended the conference. *''Hosts'': Ministry of Science and Technology, Shenzhen Municipal People’s Government *''Organizers'': China International Talent Exchange Center, China Science and Technology Exchange Center, Science and Technology Innovation Commission of Shenzhen Municipality, Human Resources and Social Security Administration of Shenzhen Municipality *''Co-organizers'': Shenzhen Center for International Exchange of Personnel The Conference on International Exchange of Professionals was founded in 2001 by Ministry of Science and Technology (the

State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs The State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs (SAFEA; ) is an external name used by China's Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security. SAFEA was previously its own agency of the government of the People's Republic of China (PRC) that ...

(SAFEA)), after an approval by the

State Council State Council may refer to: Government * State Council of the People's Republic of China, the national cabinet and chief administrative authority of China, headed by the Premier * State Council of the Republic of Korea, the national cabinet of S ...

. The first conference was held in

Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...

and continued to be held there until 2005. In 2006, the conference was moved from Nanjing to

Shenyang Shenyang,; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly known as Fengtian formerly known by its Manchu language, Manchu name Mukden, is a sub-provincial city in China and the list of capitals in China#Province capitals, provincial capital of Liaonin ...

for the first time. In 2007, the conference was permanently shifted to

and has been held there since then. In 2012, the conference was held in Shenzhen and was attended by

Zhao Qizheng Zhao Qizheng (; born January 1940) is a retired Chinese engineer and politician. Previously he served as director of the State Council Information Office and director of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese Peopl ...

and Alistair Michie. In 2015, then Vice Premier of China,

attended the conference, held in Shenzhen. The International Intellectual Forum also took part in the conference. In the following year, the conference was held between 15 and 16 April with participants from seventy countries. It also included a forum on vocational ability construction organized by the

Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS) is a ministry under the State Council of China which is responsible for national labor policies, standards, regulations and managing the national social security. This includes labor ...

. In 2016, CIEP was held in Shenzhen organized by the

(SAFEA) and the Shenzhen municipal government. The representatives from twenty countries took part in the conference. In 2018, the conference was again held in Shenzhen and was attended by Vice-Minister of Science and Technology, Zhang Jianguo. In 2019, 17th Conference on International Exchange of Professionals was held which was attended by Minister of Science and Technology,

Wang Zhigang Wang Zhigang (; born October 1957) is a Chinese Information engineering (field), information engineer who served as the Ministry of Science and Technology (China), Minister of Science and Technology from 2018 to 2023. Previously, he served as ge ...

. Pitch@Palace, which was founded by

Prince Andrew, Duke of York Prince Andrew, Duke of York (Andrew Albert Christian Edward; born 19 February 1960) is a member of the British royal family. He is the third child and second son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and a younger bro ...

in 2014 was part of the event. United Kingdom was the guest of honor for the conference. In 2020, CIEP was held virtually for the first time due to

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. In 2022, the conference successfully held its twentieth event. The event was held virtually due to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. It included themes such as Shenzhen Forum, Virtual Exhibition Hall, and Project Cooperation.

Changzhou Changzhou is a prefecture-level city in southern Jiangsu, China. It was previously known as Yanling, Lanling, and Jinling. Located on the southern bank of the Yangtze River, Changzhou borders the provincial capital of Nanjing to the west, Zhen ...

was included in the virtual city exhibition hall. In 2023, the 21st Conference on International Exchange of Professionals (CIEP) was held in Shenzhen from April 15 to 16. The resonant theme was "Promoting scientific and technological innovation, seeking common development and benefiting global talents". The 21st CIEP was held both offline and online. It hosted 60 forums and activities, drawing 948 organizations from 28 countries. It featured 320 exhibitors showcasing 608 projects and 395 products, with an audience of over 53,000 people. The conference received extensive media coverage, with nearly 100 media outlets and 5.5 million viewers viewing the opening ceremony's live broadcast.

References

{{reflist 2001 establishments in China Annual events in China Events in Shenzhen Conferences in China Business conferences 21st-century conferences