On November 16, the Program for Arab Nations Officers opened at the CELAP International Communication Center. Mr. Ying Yong, Deputy Secretary of CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee and Executive Vice President of CELAP, attended the opening ceremony and delivered a speech. Also present at the ceremony were Chen Yin, Deputy Secretary General of CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee, Xu Chen, Counsellor of the Department of Asian and African Affairs under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Director of the Special Envoy Office of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum. Prof. Feng Jun, Executive Vice President of CELAP, presided over the ceremony.
On behalf of CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee, Shanghai Municipal Government and CELAP, Mr. Ying extended his warm welcome to all the program members. He pointed out that this program demonstrates the great attention paid by Arab countries to China’s development and the strong aspirations of both China and the Arab countries to extend the bilateral relationship. In 2004, the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum was established and then gradually developed into a platform for cooperations covering various sectors; in 2010, the strategic partnership featuring “Comprehensive Cooperation and Common Development” was established between China and the Arab States under the framework of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum; in 2014, President Xi Jinping proposed that China and the Arab state work together to build the “Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-century Maritime Silk Road” and strengthen the bilateral productivity cooperations, which was actively responded by the Arab countries. The cooperations between China and the Arab States are guaranteed with promising future.
Mr. Ying Yong introduced the reform and opening-up as well as the social and economic development in Shanghai, and pointed out that Shanghai had maintained steady and fast development in the recent years as the most important economic center in China. The urban construction in Shanghai keeps improving; the reform and opening-up in Shanghai has been further explored; the social undertakings in Shanghai have been developed in a comprehensive manner; people’s living standards in Shanghai have been significantly improved. Currently, in line with the requirements of the Central Government, Shanghai has firmly established and has been practicing the five concepts of development of innovation, coordination, environmental-friendliness, opening and sharing. It is carrying out various reforms with the focus on the free trade areas and is speeding up the construction of science and technology innovation centers with global impacts, targeting at shaping itself into an international economic, trading, financial and shipping center. He said that with its unique cultural charm, Shanghai had successfully hosted many international events. During the 2010 World Expo, the Saudi Arabia Museum was one of the most popular museums and was therefore permanently retained in the Shanghai Expo Park, which is the witness and bond of the China-Arab friendship.
Mr. Ying also introduced the functional orientation and the operational status of the Academy, and pointed out that CELAP had been committed to developing itself into an international, contemporary and innovative academy and had been actively engaged in international cooperations, with a view to expanding its international vision and improving its managerial capability in terms of international cooperations, the Academy has trained more than 6,000 foreign members from 123 countries and regions, which has exerted widespread influence both at home and broad. He said that both China and the Arab countries boast brilliant civilizations and the China-Arab friendship traced back to ancient times. The Silk Road carries the spirit of peaceful cooperation, opening, inclusiveness, mutual learning, mutual benefit and win-win results. He hopes that the members will have a deeper understanding of China’s economic and political development after this program and that the program can help strengthen experience exchanges between China and the Arab countries in government management and polices of economic and social development, so as to further promote cooperations between China and Arab countries in various fields.
Mr. HANI AL-DMOUR, Representative of participants and Secretary General of Higher Education and Scientific Research of Jordan, extended his appreciation to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, CELAP and other institutions and personnel that participated in this training program. He said that the China-Arab friendship had been strengthened from generation to generation; China had been offering great support and help to Arab countries in recent years; the bilateral folk cultural exchanges between China and Arab countries had been enhanced and China had become one of the most important trading partners of the Arab countries. Against the background of building the “Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-century Maritime Silk Road” together in the new era, the China-Arab cooperations enjoy bright prospects.
The Program for Arab Nations Officers is an international cooperation training program authorized by the China Secretariat of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum and undertaken by CELAP, which is designed to further enhance mutual understanding and strengthen experience exchanges in state governance, government management, and economic and social development policies between China and the Arab countries. This time, 29 members from 13 Arab countries will carry out themed seminars, combined seminars, on-site visits and other academic exchanges in a one-week training program.