From 11 to 14 September 2016, the 13th China-ASEAN Exposition (CAEXPO) was held in Nanning, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. The 13th CAEXPO, themed on “Jointly building the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, Forging an Even Closer China-ASEAN Community of Common Destiny”, designated Viet Nam the Country of Honour, and invited Sri Lanka to participate as the Special Guest Country. With the support of CAEXPO Secretariat, ASEAN-China Centre (ACC) set up an information booth during the 13th CAEXPO, which was the fourth consecutive year for ACC to set up a booth for the CAEXPO.
ACC booth was ideally located in the newly-constructed pavilion of the “Cities of Charm” in Nanning International Convention and Exhibition Centre. Brilliantly coloured and elegantly decorated, the booth included 11 light boxes displaying photos and information in English and Chinese to present ACC’s history, organizational structure, mandates, as well as its efforts to promote ASEAN-China functional cooperation in trade, investment, education, culture, tourism and media, focusing on the diversified projects to celebrate the 25th anniversary of ASEAN-China dialogue relations and the ASEAN-China Year of Educational Exchange. The booth TV screened the snapshots of ACC’s work in a continuous loop. The magazine racks were placed for free distribution of ACC publications such as Newsletters, Promotion Sheets, Facts and Figures, the Development of Education in ASEAN Member States, Guides to Tourist Routes in ASEAN, Guides of China’s Import from ASEAN, etc.
ACC booth proved popular as it attracted hundreds of visitors every day to make inquiries and seek consultations. ACC officials showed hospitality to the viewers and answered their questions in patience and presented ACC’s mandates and work in details. During the four days of the CAEXPO, a few media agencies both from China and abroad took shots at ACC booth. Mr. Vithit Powattanasuk, Director of Information and Public Relations Division of ACC, gave an interview to Radio Thailand. ACC also designed a giveaway game at the booth to encourage fans to interact on ACC’s WeChat and Microblog. ACC booth received over 2,000 visitors，provided hundreds of inquiries，and almost 10,000 pieces of information had been distributed during the exposition.