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Major Overseas Coverage of China-Caribbean Trade Forum and Fair

February 3, 2005

The Full Story

Over 70 international journalists have converged on the island for the staging of the China-Caribbean Economic & Trade Cooperation Forum and Fair 2005, which got underway yesterday (Feb. 2) at the Jamaica Conference Centre in Kingston.
The four-day event, which is also receiving wide coverage from the local press, is historic in scope as it signals the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding granting approved destination status to the Caribbean and the Guiding Framework for Economic and Trade Co-operation, which provides a basis for greater co-operation and interaction between the two regions.
The Chinese media delegation, which is 34 strong, includes representatives from China’s Central TV (CCTV), Xinhua News Agency, People’s Daily, China News Agency, Phoenix Chinese Channel, TVB News, China Radio International, ISD Hong Kong Sar, RTHK News, Asia Weekly and ATV News.
Caribbean Business from Puerto Rico, Daily Observer Newspaper out of Antigua, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Cuban Official Press, and Dewaretyd Newspaper from Suriname, were among the regional press at the function.
In addition to the many news stories, which the overseas press filed to their respective organizations, CCTV beamed to China, the signing of eight bilateral agreements between Prime Minister P.J. Patterson and Vice President of the People’s Republic of China Zeng Qinghong at Jamaica House on Tuesday (Feb.1).
CCTV also sent live feeds of yesterday’s opening ceremony at the Jamaica Conference Centre, where the Guiding Framework for Economic and Trade Cooperation and the Memorandum of Understanding granting approved destination status to 11 Caribbean countries, where signed. The TV station will wrap up its satellite broadcast today.
The feed, which had a slight delay period, was made possible through technology from Cable and Wireless Jamaica.
The state news agency, the Jamaica Information Service (JIS), was also instrumental in providing wide coverage of the activities through its webcast service, which provided live-feed via the Internet, at the signing of the agreement.
Persons were able to log on to the JIS website at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday to watch the historic signing live and this was made possible through the support of Emoquad Limited.
The JIS website also has a special Caribbean-China page, which provides information on the trade forum and fair, including interviews, news releases, and photographs. The site receives hundreds of hits per day.
The media centre at the Jamaica Conference Centre, which is being manned by JIS, provides a wide range of services to journalists who have to file stories immediately. One media crew from Cuba has already utilized the facility to upload video feed to its television station.
Internet access, photocopying and fax services and all other technical assistance are also provided at the centre. These facilities are also available at the National Arena, where the trade fair is being held and will be available until the fair ends on Saturday (Feb. 5).

Last Updated: February 3, 2005

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