Vitebsk and Jinan defined the main directions of cooperation until 2020
The document was signed by Vladimir Beleevich, Chairman of the Vitebsk City Council of Deputies, and Yin Luqian, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the People's Congress of Jinan. As noted by the head of the Chinese delegation, cooperation between the countries has been developing very actively in many areas in recent years, thanks to fruitful contacts at the highest state level. "The task of local authorities in Belarus and China is to successfully implement the agreements reached between the leaders of the two states," said Yin Luqian, and proposed to form a roadmap-2020 for interaction between the cities in several of the most important areas.
Vitebsk and Jinan have great potential for deepening industrial cooperation, as they have a developed industry and trained personnel. In this direction, promising areas could include heavy and light industry, machine tool manufacturing, logistics, information technology, as well as the production of medical equipment and pharmaceuticals. In addition, Jinan, with a population of over 7 million people, has a stable demand for quality goods, which opens up huge opportunities for Vitebsk manufacturers. Members of the Chinese delegation were convinced of the high quality of Vitebsk goods, particularly footwear and food products, during their current visit. To enhance interaction, Chinese partners proposed to establish a permanent communication channel between the administrations of the two cities, as well as to intensify the exchange of delegations from government bodies, enterprises, and organizations.
"In China, they say that relatives become closer if they communicate more often," noted Yin Luqian. In addition, it is necessary to develop projects in the humanitarian sphere, focusing on expanding
Chinese partners are ready to send their representatives to the international arts festival "Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk", and have invited the Vitebsk delegation to festivals in Jinan. To strengthen cooperation in the field of education, Yin Luqian proposed two projects: scholarships for students, which are annually allocated to Jinan's twin cities, as well as summer schools for secondary school students, during which children have the opportunity to learn about Chinese culture and lifestyle. In order to utilize the tourism potential of the two cities, a joint tourism product needs to be created, which, according to Yin Luqian, will be very popular among Chinese citizens. During the two-day visit, the Jinan delegation will visit a number of enterprises and organizations, as well as get acquainted with the cultural and historical attractions of Vitebsk. The agreement on establishing sister city relations between Vitebsk and Jinan was signed in April 2009.