A TOTAL of 32 delegates from 16 of Shenzhen's sister and friendship cities will attend the 13th China (Shenzhen) International Cultural Industries Fair (ICIF) to be held at the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center from today to Monday.
Invited by the city's foreign affairs office for a four-day tour of Shenzhen, the delegates arrived in the city Tuesday and visited the Shenzhen Foreign Languages School in Futian District yesterday.
The delegates from 14 countries across the globe, such as New Zealand, the United States, Thailand, Vietnam, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Finland and Greece, were guided by student docents on a tour of the campus, on which they learned about the school's history and attended classes with students.
Apart from enjoying some folk music performed by six students and a teacher with two kinds of traditional Chinese instruments, guzheng and pipa, the guests also learned how to write calligraphy and made simple paper-cuttings with students.
Duncan Sandeman, head of the civic and international relations office at the city council of the New Zealand city Christchurch, said that he felt lucky to be invited to Shenzhen because it offered a wonderful opportunity to come and see what Shenzhen is doing and get to know his friends in the city better.
"I think one of the great advantages of this trip is that we are getting to meet one another and make new contacts and new friends from all around the world," Sandeman said.
He said that Shenzhen has impressed him a lot as it has developed rapidly from a village to a gigantic modern city over the past 30 years. "We would be very keen to have further closer cooperation culturally, economically and in tourism with Shenzhen," he said.
Currently, Shenzhen has established relationships with 83 sister and friendship cities in 53 countries around the world.
The delegates'visit to Shenzhen will lay a foundation for further cooperation in trade, education, culture and other areas between Shenzhen and these cities, according to the foreign affairs office.
The delegates also visited a technology company and Splendid China yesterday afternoon. They will attend the Liaisons Conference for International Departments of Friendship Cities tomorrow.
A total of 117 exhibitors from 40 countries and regions and around 20,000 overseas buyers are attending this year's ICIF.
One of the highlights of the fair is the Belt and Road Exhibition Hall, where traditional handicrafts, creative design products, intangible cultural heritages and performances from Belt and Road countries will be presented to visitors.
Exhibitors from 35 countries and regions have set up booths in the Belt and Road Exhibition Hall, including some attending the fair in government-organized groups for the first time, such as exhibitors from Israel, South Africa and Imperial County in California of the United States.
