On the morning of August 9, 2022 (GMT+8), the opening ceremony for seminar on Railway Planning for Officers from Greater Mekong Subregion, hosted by Ministry of Commerce and organized by MOFCOM Training Base for International Business Officials (Shanghai) was held online. Mr. Fang Meng and Mrs. Chen Qingfen from the Foreign Economics and Cooperation Division of Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, Chen Wei, executive vice dean of International Education College of Shanghai Business School and Mr. Fang Yugen, General Manager of Zhengyuan Technology Service (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. attended the opening ceremony.
Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed a global development initiative at the United Nations General Assembly, which aims to prompt the international community to refocus on development issues, and has contributed Chinese solutions and Chinese wisdom to solving development problems. China and the countries along the Mekong River are connected by mountains and water, and are close and friendly neighbors and natural partners. The seminar is a vivid manifestation of China and the Mekong sub-region countries overcoming difficulties together, carrying out mutually beneficial cooperation and seeking common development. Through online communication and in-depth discussions between countries, the seminar will further promote the development of the railroad transportation industry in the post-epidemic period, thus leading to the economic recovery of each country.
Fang Meng said that the railroad, as the artery of economic development, is the dominant force in the transportation market and plays an irreplaceable role in the world economic development. It is hoped that this seminar will not only provide an opportunity for mutual learning and exchange, but also build a bridge for China and the Mekong countries to strengthen multi-disciplinary exchanges and deepen practical cooperation, promote the development of the railroad transportation industry, and help the friendly relations between the countries to reach a new level.
Chen Wei said that the improvement of railroad planning and construction capacity will help accelerate the cooperation of infrastructure interconnection of GMS countries, bring into play the regional linkage effect, promote the construction of a "new international land and sea trade corridor", promote regional economic recovery and resilient growth, and make an important contribution to the prosperity and stability of the sub-region, as well as create a frontier window and important support for promoting China-ASEAN cooperation. This seminar is led by the idea of building a community with a shared future for mankind, promotes multi-level and multi-field exchanges and cooperation between China and the participating countries, promotes the common development and provides new development opportunities for improving the well-being of the people of all countries.
Fang Yungen, speaking as an expert representative, said that China Railway has achieved rapid development in the past 20 years. He hoped that through this seminar, he would share with the participants the achievements of China's railway construction, learn from each other and make progress together. He also hopes to deepen friendship and promote multilateral cooperation with them while exchanging professional knowledge in the cloud.
Mr. Sokong Ly, an official from the Ministry of Public Works and Transport of Cambodia, representing the participants, firstly expressed his gratitude to the Ministry of Commerce of China and Shanghai Business School in his speech. He said that railroad planning plays a very important role in improving people's livelihood, and he hoped that this seminar could improve the railroad planning level of the participants and build a platform for future cooperation among Mekong sub-region countries.
The seminar for Railway Planning for Officers from Greater Mekong Subregion will last 21 days and 14 officials from Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia will participate.
Written by: Ma Yizhou
Photos by: Ni Haoran
Reviewed by: Chen Wei
