With the theme of "Green Silk Road, Win-win Cooperation", the Henan Day was held in the China Pavilion at the Astana Expo on August 8.

Officials attending and addressing the opening ceremony included Chen Zhou, vice-chairman of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), Shu Qing, deputy governor of Henan province, Liu Jiangping, Charge d'affaires of Chinese ambassador to Kazakhstan, Talgat Doskenov, vice-chairman of the National Chamber of Entrepreneurs of the Republic of Kazakhstan (NCE), Meirzhan Myrzaliev, deputy head of Kostanay region in Kazakhstan, Kasenov Baurzhan Kazybekovich, deputy head of Pavlodar region, and Aidyn Bayedilov, general director of the Kazakhstan Investment Cooperation Agency. Nearly 160 people attended the event, including Pavilion representatives from other countries, and delegations from Kazakhstan and Henan province.

Chen Zhou, vice-chairman of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), delivers a speech.

Chen Zhou said that China and Kazakhstan are good neighbors, and this year marks the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Kazakhstan and also the China Tourism Year in Kazakhstan. China's participation in the expo is conducive to promoting development and cooperation on economics and trade, culture and tourism between China and Kazakhstan.

Henan province is the fertile land where Chinese civilization initially began, and it contributes to the development and prosperity of the ancient Silk Road. At present, Henan is striving to build the Asia-Europe commodity trading and logistics center, Silk Road cultural exchange center and energy storage and transportation center, promoting cooperation, economic and trade exchanges with countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative. Chen said that through the event, he hopes Henan will share their experience, strengthen cooperation and seek mutual development with Kazakhstan and other countries.

Shu Qing, deputy governor of Henan province, delivers a speech.

Shu Qing pointed out that Henan has colorful cultural resources in the light of its long history. After nearly 40 years of development, it has become a major agriculture province, economy province and a newly developed industry province in China, and an important modern logistics center with integrated transportation.

The event aims to showcase the image of Henan, strengthen relations with other countries, share opportunities brought by the Belt and Road Initiative, deepen economic and trade exchanges and cooperation on transportation and logistics, international trade, production capacity and other fields.

Liu Jiangping, Charge d'affaires of Chinese ambassador to Kazakhstan, delivers a speech.

"If you want to know about the one thousand years of modern Chinese history, you should go to Beijing; if you want to know China's three thousand years of history, you should go to Xi'an; and if you want to know China's five thousand years of history, you must go to Henan," Liu Jiangping said in her speech.

In recent years, with the implementation of Belt and Road Initiative and the comprehensive development of Sino-Kazakhstan relations, the cooperation between Henan and Kazakhstan and the whole region of Central Asia is showing the momentum of rapid development. With the route starting from Zhengzhou, the regular China-Europe freight trains have made Kazakhstan's agricultural products appear more frequently on the dining tables of Chinese households. Liu believes that the arrival of the Henan delegation will bring new opportunities for the cooperation between Henan and Kazakhstan.

Kasenov Baurzhan Kazybekovich, deputy head of Pavlodar region, delivers a speech.

Kasenov Baurzhan said that China is the largest cooperation partner of Pavlodar in Asia, and many of the cooperation projects brought by Henan delegation mean that there are great potentials of cooperation between Pavlodar and Henan. He said that Pavlodar is Kazakhstan's energy center and it is expected to establish more cooperative relations with China through joint ventures, trade and other forms of active exchanges in various fields.

Aidyn Bayedilov, general director of the Kazakhstan Investment Cooperation Agency, delivers a speech.

Aidyn Bayedilov said that it is of great significance for Pavlodar and Kostanay to participate in the Henan Day. It fully demonstrated the possibility and great space for effective cooperation between Kazakhstan and China. He pointed out that Henan province is the cradle of Chinese civilization, and the ancient Silk Road has a far-reaching impact on Henan province. By means of utilizing the Silk Road Economic Zone and the expo platform, Kazakhstan Investment Cooperation Agency is looking forward to promoting the establishment of pragmatic and effective cooperation between the entrepreneurs of the two nations.

Performance of Shaolin Kung fu

During the event, several monks from the Songshan Shaolin Temple in Henan province performed Shaolin Kung fu for the tourists and guests. The wonderful performance won a storm of applause from the audience.

On the afternoon, hosted by the Henan government and the Ministry of Agriculture of Kazakhstan and organized by the Henan CCPIT and the Kazakhstan Investment Cooperation Agency, the "China (Henan) - Kazakhstan Economic and Trade Cooperation Fair" was held as scheduled. Henan delegation launched more than 100 cooperation projects in the fields of energy, environmental protection, agricultural cultivation, food processing, aviation logistics, automobile, and electronic technology. They also held a signing ceremony of key cooperation projects between Henan and Kazakhstan, amounting to approximately $300 million.

Shu Huan, curator of the China Pavilion, Yao Rui, executive director of the China Pavilion, and Yao Lujie, deputy minister of exhibition department of China Chamber of International Commerce (CCOIC), attended the opening ceremony.