Sister—City Partnerships Propel

Agreements signed by local governments in China

Since many cities in China have established sister-city relationships with cities of ASEAN member states — such as the partnership that exists between China’s Kunming and Myanmar’s Yangon — city partnership has become a major channel for promoting understanding， friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation between China and other countries across the world. It has also been a vital driving force and cornerstone in the development of bilateral relations. So far， China has established sister-city relations with 2，300 cities or states in 133 countries worldwide， building friendship bridges， cooperative networks and win-win ties with the rest of the world.

Just before the ASEAN-China Governors/Mayors’ Dialogue， held on March 24 as part of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2017， two important agreements were finalized between China and ASEAN member countries. The first such agreement was between southern China’s Hainan province and the Philippines’ Palawan province， and the second agreement was between Hainan’s provincial capital， Haikou， and Yangon， Myanmar’s capital.

Initiated in 2015， two sessions of the ASEAN-China Governors/Mayors’ Dialogue have already been held. As a new exchange mechanism， it has played an irreplaceable role in promoting China-ASEAN dialogues at the local government level. During this year’s session， delegates discussed and shared their opinions on a number of issues under the main topic of “deepening people-to-people exchange， advancing the Belt and Road Initiative”.

Exploring New Models

The year 2017 marks the China-ASEAN Year of Tourism Cooperation， as well as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development declared by the United Nations. Governors and mayors from China and ASEAN countries offered their advice on tourism development， one of the highlighted areas of China-ASEAN cooperation.

“China is now the largest source country of foreign tourist arrivals （FTAs） in ASEAN， and six of the top 15 countries with the most FTAs in China are ASEAN countries，” said Yang Xiuping， Secretary General of the ASEAN-China Center. Yang said she believes that with great potential and broad prospects， China-ASEAN tourism cooperation can propel the Belt and Road Initiative.

“The two sides should explore new models of tourism cooperation to promote coordinated development in various fields，” Yang added.

Sister-city or provincial partnerships provide new opportunities for China-ASEAN tourism cooperation.

“We have the magnificent Angkor Wat， numerous ancient temples and fantastic sunsets， all in Siem Reap，” said Pov Piseth， Vice Governor of Cambodia’s Siem Reap province， beaming with pride and sending a warm invitation to all participants to visit his province. “With the potential of the Siem Reap tourism industry determined， we have made a strategic plan for tourism development from 2012 to 2020. Ecotourism， green tourism and community-based tourism are the three key areas to be improved.”

Peou also said he hopes that all concerned parties enhance their cooperation to facilitate tourism development.

Malaysia’s Penang state and Hainan province became sister states/provinces in 2013. Lim Hock Seng， Executive Councilor of Penang State， said he expects that friendly exchanges between Penang and Hainan could be strengthened through cooperation in fields like tourism， investment and culture. Since Penang boasts wonderful landscapes and a diverse culture， Lin noted that all are “welcome to Penang to enjoy our food and culture”.

Concerning methods to deepen tourism cooperation， a number of Dialogue participants suggested that powered by the construction of the Belt and Road， China and ASEAN countries should strengthen connectivity and improve the quality of tourism services to foster people-to-people exchanges. At the same time， preferential policies should be introduced to make tourist travel more convenient.

Zhang Wei， vice mayor of Nanning， capital of southern China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region， said he believes that simplifying visa procedures should be a key part of promoting China-ASEAN tourism cooperation.

“Now， Chinese travelers departing from Nanning can enter some ASEAN countries like Thailand without a visa， and we expect more agreements on this issue to be made in the future，” Zhang said. He also pointed out that a regional tourism collaboration and communication mechanism should be established for high-level coordination and cooperation projects. Moreover， efforts should be made to build long-term cooperation mechanisms and enhance regional collaboration on joint marketing， such as tourism resources sharing， product promotion and mutually beneficial policies.

Educational Exchanges

As an old Chinese proverb goes， “Give a man a fish， and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish， and you feed him for a lifetime”. Development cannot be realized without knowledge， education and experience. In fact， education has long been a key priority in China-ASEAN people-to-people exchanges.

So far， China has signed educational exchange and cooperation agreements with all ASEAN member states， and agreements on mutual recognition of university degrees with four of them. In 2016， a total of 120，000 Chinese students were pursuing their education in ASEAN countries， while more than 80，000 ASEAN students pursued their degrees in China. So far， China’s Ministry of Education and Ministry of Foreign Affairs have jointly set up 30 education and training centers targeting students from ASEAN countries.

Liu Cigui， Governor of Hainan， noted that universities in Hainan have established partnership relations with 36 ASEAN higher education institutions， and more cooperation in academic and research projects is expected in areas such as tropical agriculture， tropical medicine， oceanography， tourism and language study. “Study in Hainan”， an ongoing provincial government project， plans to offer scholarships to 100 ASEAN students each year. Meanwhile， Chinese university students in Hainan are encouraged to apply for exchange programs organized by ASEAN higher education institutions. Hainan will also raise fund through different channels to increase education aid to ASEAN countries. Around 300 technical and managerial personnel will receive professional training each year.

Omphoeurn Kunvuth， Deputy Governor of Cambodia’s Kampong Cham Province， said that considering the development gap between China and countries like Cambodia， there should be educational cooperation targeted at national development. He said he hopes that Cambodian students and civil servants will gain access to visiting and training programs to promote exchanges in culture， religion and language， as well as to learn from China’s experience.

According to Jose Chaves Alvarez， Governor of Palawan Province， the Philippines， China-ASEAN educational cooperation has been a good example of people-to-people exchange between the two sides， as it has facilitated the spread of knowledge across borders. Alvarez suggested that partnerships should be established in education-related areas based on the needs of development of concerned parties.

The Belt and Road Initiative is now transforming from an idea into a tangible set of accomplishments， which could not have been achieved without the implementation of specific projects. Since cities are important carriers in the process of implementation， strengthening exchanges between cities along the route is not only a priority in deepening China-ASEAN cooperation， but it also provides an historic opportunity for regional development.

Participants of the Dialogue agreed upon the theme of “deepening people-to-people exchange， advancing the Belt and Road Initiative”. They also said they hope that following the principles of mutual benefit and win-win results， all-round cooperation on education could be launched to remove barriers and realize resource sharing. At the same time， the great potential of China-ASEAN tourism cooperation should be fully exploited to improve tourism infrastructure and services， facilitating integrated regional tourism development.

By the end of the meeting， an ASEAN-China Governors/Mayors’ Joint Statement was signed. All attendees stated they believe the Belt and Road Initiative proposed by China serves the needs of ASEAN countries in terms of development， providing broad prospects for mutually beneficial cooperation between China and ASEAN. All concerned parties are willing to work together to tap cooperation potential at the local government level and continue to promote friendly relations between China and ASEAN cities or provinces. Such cooperation will prove an important part of the sound and healthy development of China-ASEAN relations.