Zhang Yu

JeniZhang13@163.com

THE 8th annual China Charity Fair is slated to take place from Sept. 18 to 20 at the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center in Futian District. A launch ceremony was held at the Civic Center yesterday.

Registration for participation in the fair, or other key sideline activities, such as the China Public Welfare Project Contest and the China International Philanthropic Movie Festival, is open on the official website of the charity fair (http://www.cncf.org.cn).

The three-day event will feature three pavilions. The first pavilion will focus on exhibition, where examples of successful and innovative poverty-alleviation projects will be displayed.

The second pavilion will showcase some agricultural products and specialties from poverty-stricken areas, which is aimed at encouraging the public to support poverty alleviation through commerce.

The third one highlights the innovative application of cutting-edge technologies, concepts, projects and products in the field of public welfare, especially the specialized and diversified social services in serving special groups, strengthening social governance, solving social problems and promoting the sustainable development of poverty-stricken areas.

China is en route to reaching its target of eradicating poverty in rural areas and eliminating regional poverty by the end of 2020.

“This year’s charity fair will mobilize social forces with greater efforts and more practical measures to help win the tough battle against poverty,” said Wu Yuanxiang, deputy head of the city’s civil affairs bureau, at the launch ceremony.

The ceremony also announced the launch of a project that consists of a series of international seminars to share China’s experience and achievements in poverty alleviation to the world.

The first China Charity Fair was held in Shenzhen in 2012, and the event has since been organized annually, attracting 9,064 organizations with 2,367 projects of an agreed worth nearly 52.9 billion yuan (US$7.45 billion).

More than 1,400 public welfare and charitable activities have been held, and nearly 1.19 million visitors have attended the fair.