Teresa Wat, BC's International Trade minister and minister responsible for Asia-Pacific strategy and multiculturalism.

Since 2001, BC's goods exports to China have skyrocketed 691 per cent, according to the BC government, to $5.75 billion in 2012.

The president and CEO of a multicultural broadcasting company, Wat has represented the Vancouver-area electoral district of Richmond Centre as a member of the BC Liberal Party since she was elected to the legislative assembly in 2013. Last June, Premier Christy Clark appointed Wat as minister of International Trade, and minister responsible for the Asia-Pacific strategy and multiculturalism.

Wat said she wants to tighten BC's bond with China by "leveraging" its diverse population.

In 2011, Canada had a foreign-born population of about 6.8 million, representing 20.6 percent of the total population, according to Census data. From 2006 to 2011, Asia was Canada's largest source of immigrants.

"Immigrants to Vancouver still maintain their personal, cultural, family, business and government relationship," the Hong Kong-born Wat said. "In Asia, a government to government relationship is very important. We can help promote the business to business relationship." The community's ties to overseas markets "can turn into meetings" that eventually lead to deals, she said.

Relationships are particularly important in doing business with China, as many Western investors have found out. "When you are dealing with a Chinese businessman, you have at least seven or eight meetings before you can strike a business deal," Wat said. "That's something a lot of American business people don't really get — you really have to invest time. It's like a marriage — you have to try to understand each other. And you have to nurture that relationship even after you become friends."

Growing up, Wat's heroine was Hua Mulan — the legendary Chinese girl who takes her aged father's place in the army to fight invaders. It is a story of feminism, "since the female traditionally never gets a place in Chinese society," Wat said. Hua Mulan "shared a great wish of helping her father, trying to help a brother as well, doing the things a female can't do — that's why she's my heroine".

Her admiration of Hua Mulan and the message she absorbed from her parents still drive her today. "Even if you are a woman, you have to be independent, you have to be able to look after yourself, you can't depend on getting married to a rich husband", she said.