On 12 July, the British Chamber of Commerce Shanghai (BritCham Shanghai), in partnership with the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce (SCOFCOM), hosted a Government-Enterprise Roundtable Dialogue for small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
SCOFCOM Vice Chairwoman Zhu Yi, BritCham Shanghai Vice Chair Ted Wan, and Executive Director Stuart Dunn attended and delivered speeches. The roundtable was moderated by Invest Shanghai President Xue Feng.
Stuart Dunn noted that “the Chamber has over 50 SME members. SMEs are the backbone of our economy, not just here, but globally. They are the driving force behind job creation, innovation, and economic resilience. Our SME members bring a wealth of expertise, creativity, and entrepreneurial spirit to the Chamber, enriching our collective knowledge and capabilities. To support these businesses that are seeking to enter and thrive in the Chinese market, the Chamber has a dedicated SME committee, providing a platform for sharing valuable insights and experiences. ”
Present at the meeting were BritCham Shanghai SME member companies including Shi Bisset & Associates, Runxin Insurance Brokers, DavidHugh, System in Motion, Fugumobile, RedFern Digital and Domino China. Members raised relevant questions on the overall government support and services for SMEs, expanded financial opening-up, policies and opportunities in the artificial intelligence industry, industry-university-research cooperation, digital trade and Silk Road e-commerce, and talent development policy.
Representatives from SCOFCOM, Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipality, Shanghai Municipal Talents Work Bureau, Office of The Financial Commission of The CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee, Shanghai Jing’an District Commission of Commerce, Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization answered the questions and shared recent policy updates.
Madam Zhu Yi, on behalf of SCOFCOM, expressed her gratitude to the British businesses in Shanghai for their contributions to the city’s economic and social development. Madam Zhu addressed each of the SME companies’ questions and introduced the latest economic and trade cooperation between Shanghai and the UK as well as Shanghai’s “(2+2)+(3+6)+(4+5)” modern industrial system which provided opportunities for British businesses including SMEs.
The “2+2” strategy involves two integrations and two transformations: integrating advanced manufacturing with modern service industries and achieving digital transformation and green low-carbon transformation across all industries, particularly traditional ones in Shanghai.
The “3+6” strategy focuses on vigorously developing three leading industries—integrated circuits, biomedicine, and artificial intelligence—and six key industries—electronic information, life and health, automobiles, high-end equipment, advanced materials, and fashionable consumer goods.
The “4+5” strategy aims to pre-emptively position Shanghai in four emerging industries—digital economy, green low-carbon, meta-universe, and intelligent terminals—and five future industrial directions—future health, future intelligence, future energy, future space, and future materials.
The City government also introduced the ‘REACH initiative’ to enhance the service system for foreign businesses, which includes “Round Table”, “Express service for policy release”, “Answer to request”, “Conference” and “Hotline for HQ” to ensure direct and effective communication and support.
BritCham Shanghai remains committed to supporting the SME business community by bringing policy updates and facilitating more dialogues between businesses and local government.
