Vice President of German SPD Thorsten Schäfer-Gümbel made a speech in Sustainable Development Dialogue. Photo by Wang Hui, Reporter from Nanfang Daily

 

    30 years ago, Deng Xiaoping and other Chinese leaders shook hands with President of German SPD Brandt for cooperation, which marked that two parties officially established inter-party relationship. Nowadays, extensive cooperation between two parties bloom and fruit in Jieyang of Guangdong. Yesterday, the CPC and the SPD carried out the second round of Sustainable Development Dialogue, with a theme of Sustainable Development Urbanization. Sino-German Metal Eco City in Jieyang, is not only an important platform for cooperation between Guangdong and Germany, but also an experimental field for exploring new forms of pragmatic cooperation between the CPC and the SPD in the new period.

 

    Sino-German Metal Eco City can blossom and fruit

 

    The year of 2014 is a special year for Sino-German relationship, as well as the 30^th anniversary of inter-party relationship between the CPC and the SPD. Last year, both sides decided to implement the urbanization partnership.

 

    During the dialogue yesterday, Vice Minister of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee Li Jinjun said, the current Sino-German ties were in the best historical period, and the extensive, intensive and enthusiastic cooperation reached an unprecedented level.

 

    In the conference, vice-governor of Guangdong Chen Yunxian said, Sino-German Metal Eco City was not only an important platform for cooperation between Guangdong and Germany, but also an experimental field for exploring new forms of pragmatic cooperation between the CPC and the SPD in the new period. Sino-German Metal Eco City would be co-constructed into a new highlight in the cooperation with Germany and inter-party exchanges.

 

    German Federal Parliament Member Matthias Miersch said the cooperation case could blossom and fruit. In the conference, it was introduced that the Metal Enterprises Union of Jieyang had established 4 offices in Germany, built up alliances with 9 associations and cooperated with over 20 scientific and research institutions in Germany.

 

    Urbanization must rely on industry

 

    In the conference, totally 15 representatives of both sides made speeches and discussions on subjects around urbanization of “People Oriented”,”Ecology First”,”Integration of City and Industry” and “Urbanization Partnership”.

 

    Li Jinjun, said, representatives of two parties reached consensuses on sustainable urbanization as follows: both sides believed that urbanization should focus on people, which required people’s all-around development,social fairness and justice, improvement of public services level and people’s living level, so as to constantly promotesocial progress. The concept of ecological civilization should be integrated into that of urbanization development, to promote  ecological, green, cycle and low-carbon development, to reduce the interference and damage to nature as possible, to implement intensive utilization of land, water, energy and other resources. Many representatives insisted that urbanization should rely on industry.

 

    Explore small pilot area of Sino-German industry

 

    Yesterday afternoon, the participants also visited Sino-German Metal Eco City and Junpu E-commerce Village. Secretary of the CPC Jieyang Municipal committee and Director of the Municipal People’s Congress Standing Committee Chen Lyuping introduced that, Jieyang emphasized the city development on industry, such as 8 key industrial parks including Sino-German Metal Eco City to promote urbanization of industrial parks and industrialization of cities and towns, trying to create a demonstration area for integration of city and industry. Depending on metal industry with a long history, Sino-German Metal Eco City is co-constructed by Germany and Guangdong/China for active exploration on industrial pollution treatment, industrial transformation and upgrading, integration of city and industry, new-type urbanization.

 

    Deputy Secretary of the CPC Jieyang Municipal Committee and Mayor of Jieyang Chen Dong said, on one hand, Jieyang was an important metal industrial production base in China, but generally at a low level in the industrial chain. Therefore, it is hoped to cooperate with Germany to promote industry to ascend a height and to achieve transformation and upgrading. On the other hand, German manufacturing industry required industrial spillover and had a wish to expand Chinese market.

 

    It was introduced that Jieyang would focus on several events, for example, constructing Sino-German industrial cooperation and research institution, holding Sino-German SMEs exchanges, co-constructing Sino-German international industrial incubator with Adlershoff, creating Sino-German industrial cooperation fund, co-constructing Sino-German Dual University of Applied Sciences with Fachhochschule Esslingen, co-compiling a negative list for Sino-German Metal Eco City with Adlershoff, and exploring a small pilot area for Sino-German industrial and urbanization construction.

 

    Topical Issues

 

    20 years required to reach European level of urbanization

 

     “Urbanization in China reaches a rate of about 53% at present. According to the current growth rate, 20 years at least are required to reach about 70% European level of urbanization.” said Li Jinjun, and that was the greatest potential for Chinese future economic growth.

 

    Chinese urbanization faces opportunities as well as challenges. Take Guangdong for example, by the end of 2013, Guangdong reached a rate of 67.76% in urbanization, and urban system was constantly improved. Vice governor of Guangdong Chen Yunxian pointed out, extensive mode of urbanization was still applied in Guangdong, while some highlighted contradiction and problems existed in the rapid urbanization process. For example, the transferring agricultural population were hard to go into urban society, the problem of dual economic structure was highlighted, the urbanization in land was faster than that in population, the land use for city and town construction was extensive and inefficient, the problems of resources and environment were increasingly serious, and etc.

 

    However, German urbanization is almost developed. Vice-president of SPD Gümbel said, German also had serious ecological problems in the 1960s and 1970s, especially on the pollution of surface water, lakes and rivers. But later the Rhine had successful treatment. “It’s improved that through political, economic and legal measures, waters of serious pollution can be treated to be clear.”

 

    Li Jinjun believed that, both sides should seize the opportunity to construct the new-type urbanization into a new platform, highlight and breakthrough for the future-oriented Sino-German strategic pragmatic cooperation.

 

    Opportunity of self-shaping city to citizens

 

    A consensus was reached in the conference that urbanization should focus on people. “The integration level into city for the people can be well solved by city shaping.” said Gümbel.

 

    In the speech of Tanja Machalet, Rheinland-Pfalz state senator, several cities in Germany face the problems of crowded poor people and less good job opportunity. A few years ago, social city construction was started in Germany, with the purpose of improving livable and comfortable environment for living in the cities through sustainable city development., like improving the local economy, offering jobs for people living in the cities with industrial cluster or poor people, and offering education opportunity for them. “People of all levels should be considered into the city planning. Especially a self-shaping and self-living chance should be given to them.”

 

    Interviewed and written by Nandu reporters: Xue Bingni, Zhang Hao, Tan Lin, Liu Didi(intern), Zhang Miao(intern)