On Dec. 1, the 3rd Overseas Chinese Talent Conference for Development officially opened in Fuzhou, Fujian. Hosted by the All-China Federation of Returned Overseas Chinese and the People's Government of Fujian province, and organized by the Fujian Federation of Returned Overseas Chinese and the municipal government of Fuzhou, this conference has brought together overseas Chinese talents, experts, scholars, overseas Chinese business leaders, community leaders as well as enterprise representatives from home and abroad to discuss cooperation and development together, injecting strong momentum from the overseas Chinese community into the high-quality development of Fujian and even the whole country. 

The scene of the opening ceremony of the 3rd Overseas Chinese Talent Conference for Development [Photo by Zhang Xiaoling]

Adhering to the positioning of "based in Fujian, serving the whole China and facing the world," the conference has elaborately set up 16 key events in five major sections, including the opening ceremony, "Open Competition," overseas Chinese talents for education, talent introduction, and "Overseas Chinese Talent Pool" achievements showcase. The conference specially invited Anhui province as the Guest Province of Honor, Harbin city of Heilongjiang province as the Guest City of Honor, Harbin Institute of Technology and Tongji University as the Guest Universities of Honor, establishing a multi-stakeholder, synergistic feature of conference organizing.

A total of 1,036 guests attended the opening ceremony, including experts, scholars from 39 countries and regions around the world, as well as representatives of professional institutions and associations at home and abroad. The number of overseas guests accounted for more than 64% of the total. The participating lineup features "high-level, internationalization and new generation."

Before the opening ceremony, representative guests visited the achievements showcase area of "Overseas Chinese Talent Pool" to fully understand Fujian's overseas Chinese affairs practices. The opening ceremony was full of highlights. It announced the list of winners of the 2nd "Flourish in Fuzhou" Global Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition, held the Flag Presentation Ceremony for the "Expert Service Team of the Overseas Chinese Talent Conference for Development," and the unveiling ceremony for the first batch of "Overseas Chinese Talent Hub," launched the Maritime Silk Road ASEAN International Industry-Education Integration Community, and conducted the signing of the "2025 Overseas Chinese Talent Open Competition" projects, effectively transforming overseas Chinese talent resources into tangible developmental outcomes.

To build an "Ever-lasting Overseas Chinese Talent Conference," the conference innovatively established "Overseas Chinese Talent Stations" to build channels for high-level overseas Chinese talents to connect with China, promote industrial upgrading and facilitate the sustainable development of local economy. Meanwhile, the Overseas Chinese Talent Pool website, with the mission of "connecting global intelligence to power the journey of serving the nation," has constructed a three-dimensional integrated talent service system featuring "policy guidance, technical enablement and professional services" for overseas Chinese, overseas students and returned overseas Chinese.

The successful holding of this conference not only builds an important bridge for the exchange and cooperation of overseas Chinese talents at home and abroad, but also further promotes the transformation of overseas Chinese talent resources into development advantages, and gathers more extensive forces from the overseas Chinese community for Chinese modernization.