Shared experiences draw 'sisters' closer

Shanghai and Milan signed a series of agreements for further collaboration in Milan on June 10, as a part of the Milan Expo's five-day Shanghai Week, which started on June 9.

One agreement was signed between the governments of the two cities on future cooperation. There also were two agreements signed between two Chinese and Italian companies on further commercial collaboration between Union Pay International of China and Italy's Cartasi SpA, and between Shanghai East Radio Center and Radio Global of Italy.

The signing ceremony was followed by a forum on Shanghai-Milan collaboration, which was attended by about 200 industry experts. Many Chinese and Italian businesses, as well as young artists and designers, also gave speeches at the conference.

Shanghai and Milan have been sister cities since 1979, and since then have worked together closely in economic, cultural and other fields. Shanghai, as the host of the 2010 World Expo, has shared a lot of experiences with Milan, the host of this year's event.

The five-day Shanghai Week presented many cultural activities and provided an opportunity for companies to discuss commercial relationships.

One cultural activity that pleasantly surprised viewers on its opening day was a fashion show of 500 models wearing qipao, a body-hugging, one-piece Chinese dress for women popularized in the Shanghai of the 1920s and '30s. Also, a dedicated Sino-Italian Center, called City Pavilion, was launched in the city center of Milan on June 10.

"The cooperation between Shanghai and Milan is long standing since we have lots of exchanges and visits between the two cities, in fields including the food industry and fashion industry," says Christina Tajani, deputy mayor of Milan. "We hope that the two sides can increase political and commercial cooperation, using the expo as a platform and opportunity to push forward further cooperation."

Li Yiping, secretary-general of Shanghai Municipal Government, says Shanghai and Milan have had extensive exchanges and collaboration in economic and cultural fields over the years.

"Shanghai is very glad to participate in the process of helping to organize the Milan Expo, and we are glad to contribute a series of promotional activities during the Milan Expo to promote Shanghai."

Riccardo Monti, president of the Italian Trade Commission, says he hopes there will be much more commercial cooperation between Shanghai and Milan, because the two cities have a very strong friendship and cultural inclusiveness.

"We have many opportunities to cooperate in the agricultural and fashion industries. Shanghai's consumers are also becoming increasingly sophisticated, and this opens up a market for Italian companies."

Wu Hongbo, under-secretary-general of the United Nations, says sustainable urban development is an important topic globally and he hopes Shanghai and Milan, as two expo hosts, will be able to contribute more toward sustainable development.

He says his team has helped Shanghai develop the Shanghai Manual, which is a guideline for sustainable urban development, and this manual has many important messages that other countries can learn from. Work on the manual started after the completion of the 2010 Shanghai Expo, showing an important link between this project and the expo.

"Shanghai, the host of the last expo, and Milan, our host this year, are sister cities," Wu says. I encourage you to continue this connection and to engage in ongoing knowledge and exchange, in terms of best practice, sustainable urban development, cultural exchanges, and wide-ranging activities."

(China Daily European Weekly 06/12/2015 page15)