ACT—CHINA TRADE AND INVESTMENT DEVELOPMENTS

Update: ACT trade delegation to China and World Expo

A delegation of eight ACT businesses returned to Canberra from China on 11 July after six days of exploring new trade and investment opportunities.

Led by Chief Minister and Minister for Business and Economic Development Mr Jon Stanhope, the delegation began in Beijing and finished in Shanghai, where members participated in high-level functions as part of the ACT’s silver sponsorship at the Shanghai World Expo

Delegates included representatives from ACT Education and Training Gateway, Archer Emery and Associates, Hindmarsh Group, Sentinel, Smartfix, Simmersion, RapCo International and GreenMag.

The delegation enjoyed access to senior Chinese government and business officials. The program included targeted business matching events to help the delegates build on their investment ties with China.

As part of the World Expo, Mr Stanhope hosted a ‘Welcome to Canberra' dinner and ‘Innovation Canberra' seminar, the latter featuring presentations from innovative ACT businesses. The trade mission program included a meeting with the Mayor of Beijing and municipal government officials, and a networking event hosted by Austrade.

Education Minister Andrew Barr will lead a second delegation to the World Expo in September to promote Canberra's world-class education sector.

Tianjin education delegation to visit Canberra

A Government delegation from the Chinese city of Tianjin will visit Canberra to discuss collaborations in education, following a meeting between Chief Minister Jon Stanhope and Tianjin Mayor Huang Xingguo, during the recent trade mission.

Tianjin, the commercial centre of the north of China and a major port city close to Beijing, is home to almost 12 million people. The city has embarked on a massive program of urban renewal.

Mayor Huang, a past visitor to Canberra, expressed particular interest in exploring collaboration in vocational education and training.

Chief Minister and Beijing Mayor acknowledge benefits of sister-city relationship

The benefits of Canberra's sister-city relationship with Beijing in the area of education were highlighted by the Mayor of Beijing, Mr Guo Jinlong, in a meeting with ACT Chief Minister, Mr Jon Stanhope.

Mayor Guo acknowledged the importance of a Canberra-based innovation and education exchange program, which has to date trained more than 150 members of the Beijing Finance Authority in government funding, budgeting, procurement, IT and human resources.

Mayor Guo has invited the ACT Government to participate in the Beijing Sustainability Forum in October 2010. He also expressed interest in Canberra's National Arboretum and the initiative to establish a ginko forest, one of China's rare and endangered tree species.

The Mayor and the Chief Minister expressed a joint desire to consider new initiatives to energise the sister-city relationship over the next decade.

Mr Stanhope extended a personal invitation to Mayor Guo to visit Canberra and an invitation for Beijing to be part of the Canberra's Centenary celebrations in 2013.

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