On the morning of December 17, Capital Library of China and Wellington City Libraries held a signing ceremony for strategic cooperation via video links. The two sides have reached cooperation intentions in multiple fields, including cultural communication, academic exchanges and business discussions. The Mayor of Wellington, Andy Foster, the Deputy Mayor, Sarah Free, and Director of the Education, Science and Culture Division of the Chinese Embassy in New Zealand, Yang Yaxian, attended the ceremony.

The signing ceremony was organized within the framework of the “Reading Beijing” book and photo exhibition series. It marked the successful conclusion of the series of celebrations for the 15th anniversary of the sister-city relationship between Beijing and Wellington. Since November, the “Reading Beijing” book and photo exhibition series have been held offline in Wellington Town Hall, city libraries, city schools, among other places. Integrating the promotion of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics into event planning, the Capital Library of China donated a total of 121 books to Wellington, which covered the Winter Olympics, traditional Chinese culture, Beijing tourism, Chinese language learning, etc. Apart from books, Beijing also provided photos that captured the venues and facilities for the 2022 Winter Olympics, exchanges between the two cities, new appearance of Beijing and other related topics. through which Beijing shared its latest achievements in reform and opening-up and enhanced the cultural exchanges between the two cities.

At the signing ceremony, Director of the Capital Library of China, Mao Yajun said that the two libraries establishing a cooperative relationship at the two cities’ 15th anniversary of the sister-city ties begins a new form of cultural cooperation between the two sides. She hoped this could offer new opportunities for the two sides to further resource complementarity, business cooperation, and cultural exchanges.

The “Reading Beijing” book and photo exhibition is the finale of the series of celebrations for the 15th anniversary of the sister-city relationship between Beijing and Wellington. Since the beginning of the year, the two cities have jointly hosted activities including the opening ceremony, the “Smart City” seminar, Beijing Tourism Resources Promotion Conference, Doing Business Experience Sharing Meeting, Business Fair & Promotion of “Two Zones” Policy. These activities have tapped the potential of practical cooperation in multiple fields, charting an in-depth, practical, and mutually beneficial course for the sister-city relationship.

(Photo Credit: Capital Library of China, Wellington City Council)