By Senior Reporter, China Africa News
Shanghai– Rwanda is participating in the 8th China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai, and more than a dozen Rwandan companies have travelled to show their wares on this global platform.
These firms are bringing signature products such as specialty coffee, premium tea, organic honey, chili, and artisanal handicrafts all aimed at attracting Chinese consumers and businesspartners hungry for fresh, highquality imports.
At the expo, Rwanda Development Board (RDB) Chief Investment Officer Michelle Umurungi told the Chinabased audience that “to be open is to believe in the power of the exchange of goods, ideas, and opportunity.
To be secure is to ensure that such openness does not leave our nations vulnerable but rather empowered.” She stressed that this year marks a deeper push by Rwanda to leverage the Chinese market and consolidate exports through trade rooted in rulesbased openness.
Meanwhile, Ambassador James Kimonyo of Rwanda to China said that this year’s participation is “an invaluable platform … especially for smallholder farmers and womenled cooperatives” and that the expo has already helped Rwandan brands in coffee, tea and honey to forge lasting partnerships and increase jobs back home.
“Each product showcased represents a value chain benefiting local communities. When Chinese consumers enjoy Rwandan coffee or honey, they are supporting families and entrepreneurs in Rwanda’s rural areas. This is the shared prosperity we strive to achieve,” he added.
The significance of the CIIE for Rwanda and for RwandaChina cooperation goes well beyond exhibiting products. It underscores a reciprocal business relationship: Rwanda gains access to one of the world’s largest consumer markets and secures investment and technology transfer from China, while China deepens its sourcing, market diversification, and economic linkages with Africa
In this light, the CIIE is not simply a trade fair but a strategic node where “MadeinRwanda” meets “MarketforChina,” and where cooperation unfolds into joint valuecreation, mutual growth, and sustained industrial and export partnerships.
