Memorandum on Future Cooperation and Exchange between
Hanzhong City, Shaanxi Province, P.R. China and
Turnhout City, Antwerp Province, the Kingdom of Belgium
The City of Hanzhong and the City of Turnhout formally established a city-to-city relationship in September of 2001. Since then, based on mutual understanding and mutual respect, both cities have made great efforts together to cooperate in economic, cultural, educational and environmental protection fields. Certain achievements have been made. At the same time, a first start was made for mutual understanding and friendship between the people of two cities. All of this has laid a solid foundation for future cooperation. In order to consolidate our achievement and enlarge cooperative fields as well as to carry out substantial and new cooperation between our two cities, we have had detailed and elaborated discussion on our future cooperation during the visit of the Turnhout Delegation headed by Mr. Marcel Hendrickx, mayor of Turnhout. Both parties agree to exchange and cooperate in following aspects:
1. Both parties agree that the main aim of the cooperation is the mutual enforcement of the government administration in different aspects.
1 ) the provision of services to people of the city
2) the representation of the public interest
3) the stimulation of local development
Meanwhile, cooperation between the two cities is a unique opportunity to make the people and society of the two cities open minded and globally thinking. Both Turnhout and Hanzhong agree to utilize this opportunity.
2. Both parties agree that the cooperation and exchange between the two cities have to be based on mutual understanding, mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit. Under this principle, substantial cooperation and exchange can be carried out in the fields of economy, trade, culture, education, environmental protection, training of civil servants and governmental administration.
3. A long-term plan of cooperation and exchange between the two cities has to be
made. In line with the long-term plan, a feasible short-term plan will be worked out. In order to carryout the plan efficiently, an evaluation of the programs in the plan has to be taken annually
4. The cooperation and exchange in the field of governmental administration between two cities will be carried out. Information exchange connection within relevant departments will be established and both cities will have a platform to learn and to share governmental administrative experience. It is important that the communication between relevant departments can be taken place mainly by e-mail and by fax. Both cities will organize a mailbox for the inhabitants so that they can make proposals and give suggestions for cooperation.
5. In accordance with the practical situation of cooperation and exchange, both parties will decide to exchange visits of senior officials of the two cities aimed on the discussion of main issues of cooperation. After the visit of the delegation of Turnhout, Mr. Wang Chengwen, mayor of Hanzhong will head a delegation to visit Turnhout in September or October this year.
6. Turnhout has the willingness to investigate, dependent on approval by the Flemish Government, the possibilities for a new training program for civil servants of Hanzhong so that the trainees can get to know and learn environmental protection, administrative concept, structure, main functions, administrative experience of Belgian, regional and local government. Meanwhile, they can open their view and improve their administrative ability in the future.
7. Turnhout will send a person to do research in Hanzhong for the future cooperation between the two cities.
8. Cooperation and exchange in economic field will be accelerated. Both cities will focus on substantial cooperation and exchange between enterprises and do their best to promote economic and trade development of the two cities. Turnhout will try to organize a business and trade delegation to visit Hanzhong in the near future. Both cities will start to make preparation for selecting possible projects. It is expected that there will be 2 to 4 projects between enterprises of the two cities.
- Cooperation between Janssen Pharmaceutical and Hanjiang Pharmaceutical Company will be continually accelerated. Based on consolidating achievements, both cities will do great effort to promote new cooperation.
- A company of Turnhout is interested in selling tea product of Hanzhong in Europe. Hanzhong will give great support to this cooperation.
- Turnhout is a world well-known printing centre. Turnhout will investigate if there can be a cooperation in that subject.
9. The cooperation in environmental protection field will be continued and deepened. Based on the practical situation of the training program participated by Hanzhong delegation in Turnhout last September and the two evaluations, both cities agree to have environmental protection cooperation in four aspects.
- Environmental protection information exchange system will be established. Firstly, information exchange between the members of Hanzhong environmental protection training delegation and Turnhout will be carried out through e-mail and fax. Technical information exchange should be realized as directly as possible. Secondly, both parties agree to set up an environmental protection information exchange system between the two cities so that it is easy and convenient to know the practical environmental situation of both cities and international environmental protection technology.
- Environmental education is the most important thing in the environmental protection field. Both parties agree to enhance environmental education, to learn from each other, to share experience with each other and to improve citizen's environmenta1 protection concept.
- After on-spot investigation and discussion, Hanzhong will build a biological waste water disposal system. Turnhout will give technical support.
- In order to deepen and accelerate environmental protection cooperation, Environmental Protection Department of Hanzhong will select two persons to study English. Turnhout will give financial support for this program. The training has to start as soon as possible at last in October of 2004.
10. Cultural exchange will be enhanced. Both cities agree to set up people to people exchanging bridge for some cultural associations such as photography association, painting association, art association etc. In accordance with exchanging and financial situation, some joint cultural activities can be held together, which will give the chance to the people of the two cities to know the different culture. Through these activities, mutual understanding and friendship will be deepened gradually and overall cooperation will be promoted.
11. Education is another subject of cooperation in the following ways:
- Information exchange system can be set up between education departments of two cities. Through this system, two departments can exchange education information, learn from each other and improve educational administrative level.
- Connection between teachers of the two cities can be formed, for example, through contacts between teachers' Association of the two cities, teachers can open their view, get to know the trend of international education, have the chance to learn and share experience with each other.
- E-mail exchange between students of the two cities has been taken place for more than one year. Both cities will consolidate this exchange and try to have more students engaged in it.
- In order to have comprehensive and deeper exchange, two schools of Hanzhong and Turnhout can be selected to establish friendly relationship.
12. Two cities agree to enhance public awareness. Many methods will be used to make public awareness of the achievements made between the two cities and economic construction situation and socia1 development trend. In order to make public awareness, both cities will give the names of the twin city on a street in their cities. They will deliver trees of their regions to decorate their new street.
Mayor of Turnhout City Mayor of Hanzhong City
Antwerp Province Shaanxi Province,
The Kingdom of Belgium The People's Republic of China
May 14, 2004 May 14, 2004
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