Chengdu Hi-Tech Zone Launched the Fifth "European Tour" for Science and Technology Companies

CHENGDU, China, June 1, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- As the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation came to a close in Beijing, the cooperation and exchange activities between China and countries and regions along the Belt and Road intensified to new heights as a rising number of Chinese enterprises reached out and sought Chinese-foreign cooperation. On June 1^st, a delegation composed of representatives from more than 40 Chinese science and technology companies departed from Chengdu in western China, and headed to Europe to start a tour of cooperation and exchanges in Spain, France and Russia.

All corporate representatives participating in the "European Tour" hail from the Chengdu Hi-tech Zone, often referred to as the "Silicon Valley in Western China," which is also the organizer of this activity spanning half the globe."10 years ago, we focused on introducing foreign enterprises into China, and 10 years later, many Chinese companies have become fully prepared in going abroad". As the principal in charge of China's earliest platform for cooperation with Europe, Dai Yiling, Director of the EU Project Innovation Center (EUPIC), said that now the EUPIC organizes such European tours every year for Chinese enterprises, and this year's trip is already the fifth edition of the campaign.

During the "European Tour", enterprises from the Chengdu Hi-tech Zone engaged in areas like innovation and entrepreneurship, ICT, biomedicine, energy conservation, environment protection and aviation will communicate and exchange ideas on many projects with local enterprises in Spain and Russia. Gao Chao, general manager of Chengdu ThinkZone Investment Group Co., Ltd. and a frequent participant of the "European Tour", said, "Activities such as project promotion, paired negotiation and industrial seminars held during the 'European Tour' greatly strengthens collaborations between Chinese and overseas companies in aspects like technology, human resources and market, and facilitates mutual benefit and win-win cooperation".

For the duration of the campaign, 12 enterprises from the Chengdu Hi-tech Zone will also take part in the first training session of the Sino-French Sister Parks Innovation and Entrepreneurship Tutor Program in Nice, France. And in the course of the "European Tour" activity last year, Chengdu Hi-tech Zone and Sophia Antipolis in France signed the "Cooperation Agreement of Sister Parks," in which the Sino-French Sister Parks Innovation and Entrepreneurship Tutor Program was one of the important elements in a series of cooperation items between the two parties.

In addition, the Chengdu Hi-tech Zone will partner with the Spanish autonomous community of Catalonia to hold the Sino-Spanish Investment Trade Cooperation Forum, and discuss with the Centre for the Development of Industrial Technology (CDTI) of Spain on how to partake extensively in the "CHINEKA" program to promote innovation and cooperation of small and medium enterprises from China and Spain. A Chengdu Jingronghui - Venture Tianfu activity will also be held in Scolkovo Technology Park in Russia, which is regarded as the "Russian Silicon Valley". The Chengdu Hi-tech Zone will sign an agreement with the Scolkovo Foundation for the purpose of enhancing collaboration between the two parties in fields related to innovation and entrepreneurship.

As a key area along the "Belt and Road," European countries are of indisputable economic significance. In antiquity, Chengdu was the starting point of the "Southern Silk Road" and a source of supply for the "Northern Silk Road". While the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation convened in Beijing, the 2017 Global Innovation and Entrepreneurship Fair was held in Chengdu. During this period, the Business & Innovation Centre for China-Europe Cooperation, the first Chinese-European comprehensive cooperation and service platform, commenced its operation in the Chengdu Hi-tech Zone. The Centre, with a total floor space of 210,000m², is the fruit of teamwork between Chinese and European designers and architects, and it was confirmed as the permanent venue of EU-China Business & Technology Fair. 11 consecutive sessions of the Fair has been held in the Chengdu Hi-tech Zone and have attracted the participation of many innovative enterprises from Europe in search of deeper international cooperation.

SOURCE Chengdu High-tech Industrial Development Zone