Jointly organized by China’s Ministry of Science and Technology and South Africa’s Department of Science and Technology, the China-South Africa Hi-Tech Exhibition opened at Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa on the morning of October 13, 2016. Hou Jianguo, Vice Minister of MOST, Tian Xuejun, Chinese Ambassador to South Africa, and Phil Mjwara, Director-General of South Africa’s Department of Science and Technology, addressed the opening ceremony, with the attendance of more than 200 guests from the two countries.
  
After the opening ceremony, Vice Minister Hou Jianguo and Director-General Phil Mjwara held talks about bilateral cooperation. The two exchanged views on such issues as establishing joint research centers, cooperating in sci-tech parks, introducing young scientist exchange programs and holding hi-tech exhibitions, and reached a series of consensuses. 
 
The China-South Africa Hi-Tech Exhibition was the first of its kind to be jointly held by the Chinese and South African governments. The three-day event attracted more than 200 representatives from 60 enterprises in eight Chinese provinces and cities to present 170 projects of bioscience, traditional Chinese medicine, environmental protection, new energy, electronic information, and advanced equipment manufacturing, which demonstrated China’s scientific and technological achievements in recent years. Meanwhile, South Africa arranged for over 50 enterprises and institutions to display their STI achievements. Seminars on scientific and technological innovation, traditional Chinese medicine, advanced manufacturing, and new energy as well as business-matchmaking sessions were held on the sidelines of the exhibition. According to preliminary statistics, Chinese exhibitors held 660 B2B meetings with local professional visitors and signed 158 preliminary agreements to establish technology partnership, build joint R&D centers, find local trade partners and launch S&T talent exchange programs.