The forum on economic and trade cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries has broader prospects of development, a Chinese official said Monday.

Wang Chengan, secretary-general of the permanent secretariat of the Economic and Trade Forum between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, made the remarks in an interview with Xinhua.

Since its founding in October 2003, the forum has achieved remarkable results and developed smoothly, said Wang, who arrived in Lisbon to attend trade talks scheduled for April 10-11 between enterprises of the two sides.

He added that the forum has played an active role in strengthening cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking nations, and in boosting common development of Portuguese-speaking nations, Chinese mainland and the Macao Special Administrative Region.

The forum has become an effective platform for negotiations, dialogues and pragmatic cooperation between the two sides, said the secretary-general.

It has also played an increasingly important role in the development of relations between China and Portuguese-speaking nations, Wang said.

On results achieved by the forum, he said that in 2004, the two-way trade volume reached 18.27 billion dollars, up 65.7 percent from the previous year.

Bilateral trade volume rose to 23.19 billion dollars last year, up 26.9 percent on a year-on-year basis, Wang said.

In the meantime, China also increased its investment in those countries, which accumulatively amounted to almost 100 million dollars by the end of 2005.

As for cooperation in human resources development, Wang said the forum hosted various training programs in Chinese mainland and Macao. Nearly 600 officials and technicians from Portuguese-speaking countries had taken part in or visited such courses on economic management, nursery, media and tourism.

In addition, the forum has worked to broaden trade contacts, boost investment and enhance cooperation between enterprises of the two sides, he said.

On the forum's future tasks, Wang said the second ministerial meeting between China and Portuguese-speaking countries will be held in Macao in September 2006 together with an entrepreneurial conference and an international trade and investment fair.

The meeting is expected to decide on issues on their cooperation in 2007-2009 and witness the signing of relevant documents.

Wang called on all parties concerned to make concerted efforts to widen the prospects of cooperation between Chinese mainland, Macao and Portuguese-speaking countries.

The Economic and Trade Forum between China and Portuguese-speaking countries was established in October 2003 with the aim to promote economic and trade cooperation between the two sides.

Source: Xinhua