Establishment of "Four Centers": A new vertically rising platform for international cooperation under Belt and Road Initiative

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Sep 15, 2022, 09:00 ET

QINGDAO China, Sept. 15, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The China-SCO Local Economic and Trade Cooperation Demonstration Area is integrated into the new development paradigm with domestic circulation as the mainstay and domestic and international circulations reinforcing each other. The focus is on fostering and expanding economic and trade cooperation between the SCO member states and countries related to the Belt and Road Initiative. By building a platform, creating models, bringing together industries and strengthening the entities, it unites development forces through opening up, and promotes the establishment of "four centers" for international logistics, modern trade, two-way investment cooperation, as well as business, tourism and cultural exchanges and development.

2022 SCO Summer Carnival (PRNewsfoto/Stadt Qingdao)

Qingdao Multimodal Transport Center in SCODA (PRNewsfoto/Stadt Qingdao)

According to statistics, China-Europe freight train (Qilu) services have completed a total of 1,925 trips in the China-SCO Local Economic and Trade Cooperation Demonstration Area. From January to August this year, China-Europe freight train services completed 523 trips, a year-on-year increase of 46.1 percent. At present, the Demonstration Area operates 27 international and domestic train routes on a regular basis, covering 51 cities in 22 countries related to the SCO and the Belt and Road Initiative. In the first half of this year, the Demonstration Area opened the "SCO Demonstration Area – Mannheim of Germany" and "SCO Demonstration Area - Hungary - Serbia" freight train services, expanding the westbound international transport route leading from Qingdao to Europe.

At present, more than 1,800 foreign trade enterprises operate in the SCO Demonstration Area, covering mechanical and electrical products, agricultural products, textiles, etc. At the same time, 10 trade platforms and 4 cross-border e-commerce platforms have been introduced and developed. China's first RCEP certificate of origin for South Korea and the province's first declaration of origin under the China-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement were issued. Moreover, Qingdao, as the venue of the SCO Demonstration Area, has put in place a working mechanism featuring "one core leadership and global linkage" to promote economic and trade cooperation between the region and the SCO member states. In the first half of this year, the import and export volume between Qingdao and the SCO member states reached 30.75 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 14.3 percent.

So far, the SCO Demonstration Area has introduced upwards of 70 projects with a value of over 200 billion yuan. Since the beginning of this year, 21 projects with a total investment of 62.5 billion yuan have been introduced, including SCO International Agricultural Science and Technology and R&D Center. Haier COSMOPlat Industrial Internet Project with a total investment of 13 billion yuan, which is Haier's largest investment project in China, commenced construction.

People-to-people bonds provide the greatest support for the development of the SCO. The SCO Demonstration Area carries out multi-tiered exchanges in business travel, culture, education, sports and law fields through platforms such as the SCO Country Parlor, the SCO "Fazhigu" as well as brand events such as the SCO International Investment and Trade Expo and the "SCO Summer".

In addition, it focuses on "cultivating talents" for the SCO member states and "establishing a stage" for multilateral economic and trade cooperation. The SCO Demonstration Area has made solid progress in building the China-SCO Institute of Economy and Trade. So far, China-SCO Institute of Economy and Trade has held 81 training sessions on foreign aid as well as economy and trade, benefitting 7,200 trainees from SCO member states and countries related to the Belt and Road Initiative.

Contact: Ms. Zhu Yiling
Tel: 0086-532-85911619
Website: http://www.qingdaochina.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/qingdaocity
Twitter: https://twitter.com/loveqingdao

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SOURCE Stadt Qingdao