From 'made in China' to 'created in China', Kazakh people bear witness

ALMATY - "Lenovo, Huawei, Xiaomi...... Many young people in Kazakhstan use more and more products made in China with high technology," Gulmira Nurumgaliyeva told Xinhua on Saturday.

Gulmira, a fashionable Kazakh girl, was attracted by Chinese calligraphy in the Chinese Intangible Cultural Heritage Exhibition held in Almaty, the largest city of Kazakhstan.

"China is an old country with many creations in history," Gulmira said, pointing at the items at the exhibition, which is part of a four-day "Feel China" project in Kazakhstan.

"Now we are witnessing more and more products designed by China with high technology," she continued.

"Anyway, lots of my friends start to prefer using mobile phones and other digital products from China." Gulmira said.

Good quality, easy to use, reasonable prices and cool designs are the reasons why young people in Kazakhstan like digital products made in China, Gulmira explained.

In Sulpak, one of the biggest telecommunication & electrical equipment chain stores in Kazakhstan, out of ten mobile phones sold every day, three to four were made in China, a salesman told Xinhua.

"We started to know 'made in China' through Chinese clothing and small commodities, then we are used to Chinese digital products. Now we are surprised by China's rapid development of technology and innovation in so many fields," said Galim, a visitor to the Chinese smart life exhibition held in Almaty, also part of "Feel China" project in Kazakhstan.

Green, smart and modern are the main features of the smart life exhibition. Visitors have opportunities to feel smart technologies already combined with ordinary life in China, such as online services, VR (virtual reality) and digital face recognition.

Mitet Zhumabaev, a resident in Almaty, said his life is closely connected with China through internet. One of his favorite websites is the AliExpress, an online retail service made up of mostly small Chinese businesses offering products to international online buyers.

He said that now in Kazakhstan, many people buy things through cross-border e-commerce.

People here use QIWI internet wallet, which is designed by Russia and easy to find recharge terminals in public shopping places, to buy things on AliExpress.

In May, Kazakhstan's national sovereign wealth fund Samruk-Kazyna, together with the Kazakh telecom and post companies, signed a memorandum of understanding with Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba to promote cooperation in e-commerce, payment and logistics.

AliExpress has become one of the top ranking online trading platforms in Kazakhstan, with clothes, home appliances and digital products being the favorites of local consumers, according to Alexa, a commercial web traffic data provider wholly owned by Amazon.com.

"Made in China" is no longer the same as in the past. It now brings people more creations, innovations and smart technologies.