On July 5, 2018, the opening ceremony of the 2.4-square-kilometer first phase of the Djibouti International Free Trade Zone (DIFTZ), which was led constructed by China Merchants Group (CMG), and the China-Africa Economic Forum were held in Djibouti. The heads of the six African countries attended the opening ceremony and delivered a speech. Ms. Lei Yurong, Executive Director of Binshi Power, was invited to attend the events.

The President of Djibouti, Mr. Ismaïl Omar Guelleh; Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Mr. Abiy Ahmed; President of Rwanda, Mr. Paul Kagame; President of Somalia, Mr. Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed; President of Sudan, Mr. Omar Hasan Ahmad Al-Bashir ; Chairperson of African Union Commission, Mr. Moussa Faki Mahamat; Chairman of the Djibouti Ports and Free Zones Authority, Mr. Aboubaker Omar Hadi; Chinese Ambassador of Djibouti, Mr. Fu Huaqiang; Deputy General Manager of CMG and Vice Chairman of China China Merchants Port(CMPort), Dr. Hu Jianhua; Chairman of China Merchants Shekou Industrial Zone Holdings Co., Ltd, Mr. Sun Chengming; Managing Director of CMPort, Dr. Bai Jingtao; Deputy General Manager of Dalian Port Group, Mr. Xu Jian, attended the ceremony.

The DIFTZ has a planning area of 48.2 square kilometers. With the support and cooperation of the DIFTZ is jointly developed, constructed, managed and operated by CMG and Dalian Port Group.

These events marked a milestone in Djibouti’s history and consolidate the country’s role as a global trade hub. In 20 years, Djibouti are about to take advantage of its strategic location in the Red Sea to the main channel of Indian Ocean to build itself to be the regional center of ports and commerce.

Before the opening ceremony, the Djibouti Government specially invited Dr. Hu Jianhua to introduce the DIFTZ plan to the leaders of the five countries. Hu pointed out that this is a very unique free trade area because of its internationalization. Although it’s a product of Sino-Djibouti cooperation, it will mainly serve the requirements of internationalization and adopt international standards. Its mission is to provide interoperability platforms for the logistics, commerce and processing industries in the surrounding areas, which will achieve lowering costs, increasing efficiency, strengthening regional integration, and providing impetus for regional economic development. Hu Jianhua's presentation was highly recognized by leaders of the five countries, especially Mr. Abiy Ahmed, the prime minister of Ethiopia.

At 10:40 in the morning, the opening ceremony officially began. Mr. Aboubaker Omar Hadi, Dr. Bai Jingtao, and Mr. Xu Jian poured the seawater taken in the Zhula bay, Shenzhen bay and Dalian bay into a container called “JiZun”, which will be stored permanently.  At 11:45, with the first truck driving into the DIFTZ, it marked that the DIFTZ opened and operated officially.

And then, a licensing granting ceremony was held by Mr. Aboubakar Omar Hadi and Dr. Hu Jianhua for granting operating licenses to the enterprises in DIFTZ. Binshi Power is one of the licensed enterprises.

Mr. Ismaïl Omar Guelleh, President of Djibouti expressed his gratitude to the efforts made by CMG, theDIFTZ will bring prosperity to the Djiboutian, not only increase job opportunities, but more importantly, attract export processing industry which will provide "Hematopoiesis Function" for the Djibouti economy.

Mr. Fu Huaqiang, pointed out that China and Djibouti have been continuously deepening their cooperation in all aspects. Djibouti is an important pivot under the "Belt and Road" idea and layout. When DIFTZ commence operation, more and more Chinese enterprises will invest in Djibouti, which is believed will further enhance bilateral economic and trade cooperation between the two countries.