Editor's Note: Strengthening the role as the center for international exchanges is a glorious mission entrusted by the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core to Beijing. Districts across the city have faithfully implemented the overall plan by the CPC Beijing Municipal Committee, and made concerted efforts in view of their respective strong edges in location and resources in pushing ahead with relevant tasks and achieved impressive results.
To celebrate the success of the 20th CPC National Congress, the official WeChat account of the Beijing Foreign Affairs Office (WeChat ID: bjszfwb) posted a collection of "Highlights in Strengthening Beijing's Role as the Center for International Exchanges by Each District", showcasing the progress and achievements made by each district in related tasks and how they will build on past successes to further advance the capital city's development in the new era.
Much headway has been made in providing services for major state events, promoting international exchanges, pooling premium resources, and boosting international reputation. Beijing Municipal Administrative Center (BMC) strives to expand its comprehensive carrying capacity, promote international exchanges, attract premium resources, and provide better services, so as to contribute more to improving Beijing's role as China's center for international exchanges.
Better Services for Major State Events
Making preparations for the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. With the theme of "Connecting Past and Present", the torch relay, completed by 126 torchbearers in the Grand Canal Forest Park, demonstrated the perfect integration of the Olympic spirit and the historical and cultural city of Beijing.
Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Torch Relay in the Grand Canal Forest Park
Building venues and facilities for international exchanges. The increasingly internationalized Central Green Forest Park, the "green lung" of BMC, has received over 4.6 million Chinese and foreign visitors since its opening in September 2020. The BMC Theater, Library, and Grand Canal Museum are under construction, which will create a new space for international exchanges in the future.
Rapid Construction of Three Landmark Buildings in the Central Green Forest Park
Zhangjiawan Design Town, inaugurated as the permanent venue of Beijing Design Week, played host to the China-Brazil Forum of the 27th World Congress of Architects and China Architecture Exhibition. In addition, over 20 major foreign-related events were held there, including the Beijing Urban Architecture Biennale, the opening ceremony of Beijing Design Week, and the Beijing Design Week Runway Show.
The 62-kilometer Beijing-Hebei section of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal opened to traffic on a trial basis. Beijing (International) Canal Cultural Festival kicked off to showcase the charm of the long-standing Grand Canal culture and promote exchanges and mutual learning between Chinese and foreign cultures.
More Robust International Exchanges
In 2019, on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the establishment of sister-city relations between Beijing and Tokyo, Japan, Yuriko Koike, the governor of Tokyo, was invited to visit the Evergreen Woods of Beijing, and the exhibition on the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics as well as the commemoration of the 40-year friendship between the two cities. The governor spoke highly of this visit. In 2021, Thomas Østrup Møller, Denmark's ambassador to China, visited the BMC Green Valley project, noting that he would push forward Copenhagen's cooperation with Beijing in areas such as green development, creative industries, and urban planning.
Canal Business District Lights Up in the Main Colors of Chinese and Nicaraguan National Flags to Celebrate the First Year of the Resumption of Bilateral Relations
Two buildings in the Canal Business District of BMC light up to mark the 50th anniversary of China-Mexico diplomatic relations in 2022 and to show the world a vibrant BMC with clean waters. The same was done for the 200th anniversary of Ecuador's independence, the 200th anniversary of Brazil's independence, the first anniversary of the resumption of diplomatic relations between China and Nicaragua, and the like. In this way, BMC sowed the seeds of friendship and communicated its commitment to international exchange and cooperation.
In addition, BMC also played host to the special session of China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) on BMC, the 3rd Global Wealth Management Forum and other events. Domestic and foreign renowned scholars and experts, representatives of financial enterprises, and diplomatic envoys to China attended these events.
CIFTIS BMC Event Themed "A Road Connecting the Whole World, A City with a Canal of Great Fortune"
Faster Aggregation of High-End Resources
The BMC staged its first Walking Davos event in August 2022, with more than 100 business leaders from over 60 multinational companies participating online or offline. The executives saw firsthand the changes of the BMC as they visited the Central Green Forest Park, the Universal Beijing Resort, and the Canal Business District. They conducted in-depth exchanges with government representatives, with a number of partnership agreements reached.
BMC Stages Its First Walking Davos Event
The development of the "two zones" is leading to a faster inflow of international capital to the BMC. In 2021, Ueda Yagi Money Broking (China) Co., Ltd, the first wholly foreign-owned money broker in China, was launched in the BMC, followed by a series of foreign-invested projects such as Yangguang Chuxing, Ataway, CallisonRTKL, Xinyuan Jinwu, and Xinyuan Xiehe. A total of 37 foreign-invested enterprises were established in the BMC in the first seven months of 2022.
Better International Services
The construction of the international talent community has started. To accommodate the functions of the Universal Beijing Resort, an enabling living and working environment will be created with world-class medical, commercial, and other facilities to serve future residents of the over 700 apartments under construction.
Bird's Eye View of Canal Business District
The international business environment continues to improve. In addition to joint application services for Class A work permits and work-type residence permits, other benefits available for foreign nationals include: one-stop online application of operating permits and business licenses, agent services for major projects that cover all factors throughout the process and feature efficient cross-department coordination, streamlined approval procedures, and holistic service packages, as well as a "reform experiencer" mechanism that evaluates the effect of reforms, etc. These measures have been introduced for further improvement of the city's business environment.
Continuous progress has been made in improving the international language environment. We have earnestly implemented the Regulations of Beijing Municipality on Improving Language Environment for International Exchanges with efforts to regulate foreign-language signs, strengthen the capacity to provide foreign-language services at service windows, and launch the "Open Tongzhou" website in Chinese and English.
English Version of the "Open Tongzhou" Website
Higher International Reputation
In October 2019, nearly 30 journalists from 16 Beijing-based media outlets, including Agence France-Presse (AFP) and Russia Today (RT), made their first visit to the BMC. In the one-day tour, they learned about the BMC's planning and development, and work regarding ecological conservation and the protection and utilization of historical and cultural heritage sites such as the Grand Canal, the Confucian Temple, Youshengjiao Temple, Ziqing Taoist Temple, and Randeng Pagoda, which are collectively known as the "three temples and one tower".
In early 2022, journalists from Chinese and international media outlets visited the BMC on a media tour themed "New Look of the Dual Olympic City". In August, correspondents from 46 countries in the Asia-Pacific region and Africa cycled along the BMC's Binhe Greenway. Prior to the opening of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, its press center organized a visit to the BMC for Chinese and foreign reporters, enabling them to experience the high-quality development of the "Millennium City".
Press Center for the 20th CPC National Congress Organizes a Visit to the BMC to Show Chinese and Foreign Reporters the High-Quality Development of the "Millennium City"
The BMC is also showcasing its creativity by presenting various gifts with Chinese elements to the world. A prime example is the "Beijing Silk Figurine" made by Beijing Tang Ren Fang Culture Development Co., Ltd. This exquisite gift is given to foreign friends in many major diplomatic activities. Additionally, five Winter Olympics-themed sculptures by sculptor Zhang Hua were selected as the "Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Licensed Products" during the Games. Beijing's rich cultural heritage is also reflected in the handicrafts sold worldwide, such as the delicate Beijing silk flowers made by skilled women from Longzhuang Village of Huoxian Town, and the "Beijing Eight Imperial Handicrafts", which include carved lacquerware and filigree inlay.
