The Sino International Conference organized by the WCA Family of Logistics Networks, CIFA (China International Forwarders’ Association) and WCC (World Cargo Connections) drew nearly 1,500 delegates from all corners of the globe. Held at Hong Kong’s Asia World Expo Sept. 26-29, 2010, the event highlighted the importance of developing contacts in an ever-changing industry. By George Lauriat, AJOTPerhaps the only constant in the freight forwarding industry is that nothing is constant. For an independent freight forwarder the ability to adapt is imperative to succeeding, and one of the most effective means of staying abreast of industry changes is networking. The power of peers is hard to underestimate. Independents have an intimate knowledge of the conditions in their home country that goes well beyond transactional. But in a global industry, time and distance make networking a challenge. For these reasons, The Sino International Conference organized by the WCA Family of Logistics Networks, CIFA (China International Forwarders’ Association) and WCC (World Cargo Connections) ranks as one of the more significant events for independent freight forwarders and port and logistic providers. This year the three-day event drew a record breaking total of nearly 1,500 delegates from over 170 countries. Held at Hong Kong’s Asia World Expo, located adjacent to Hong Kong International Airport, the conference & exhibition brought together a strong contingent of Chinese forwarders (organized by CIFA) including Sino Trans, China’s largest freight forwarding and logistics group. They met with independent forwarders from around the globe. In addition, the 2010 Sino-International included the WCC (World Cargo Connections) that includes airlines like the Emirates, Qatar, Thai Airways, Cathay Pacific, Etihad and others. This gave the air cargo carriers a unique opportunity to discuss industry wide issues directly with their forwarding clients. Additionally, the Sino-International featured a strong contingent of African forwarders, and this reflects the growing importance of the African market to forwarders. The WCA opened a regional office in Accra, Ghana in early January 2010. Recently the president of the WCA Family of Logistics Networks, David Yokeum, traveled to Africa and met with forwarding companies and regional forwarding associations. Yokeum said at the Sino-International that he was amazed at the infrastructure and professionalism displayed by some of the independent forwarders he met in Africa, and said they would stack up against the best European or American forwarders. It was announced during the conference that CIFA and WCA Family of Logistic Networks would hold the first-ever African Regional Forwarders Conference, December 5th through December 7th 2010, in Nairobi, Kenya.  
CIFA said that the group would bring fifty of the top independent Chinese forwarding companies to Nairobi, Kenya.  David Yokeum, the WCA’s president, in his opening remarks recalled how the first Sino-International came about. Yokeum noted that CIFA approached the WCA in 2004 with a question, “How could China’s independent freight forwarders reach out to forwarders around the world?” It turned out to be a two-step process: first, with the formation of CGLN (China Global Logistic Network) and second, with the inauguration of the Sino-International conference. The establishment of the conference was a logical extension of knitting relations between China’s forwarders and the global forwarding community. As Yokeum remarked in Hong Kong, “China’s freight industry is young, and the exposure to global forwarders is a positive experience in international growth.” The first Sino-International, held in Beijing, featured 200 Chinese forwarders and 300 independent forwarders, which provided a strong base for the meeting’s future success. Like other WCA events, the main feature of the Sino-International was the one-on-one meeting. These meetings are tightly scheduled and provide an