Twenty mayors from around the world on Monday gathered to exchange their insights on city governance and development opportunities in Haikou City of south China's Hainan Province on the sidelines of the ongoing fourth International Consumer Products Expo.
Themed "shared future, shared opportunities," the mayors from countries in five continents attended a conversation hosted by the China Global Television Network (CGTN).
At the conservation, they also explored strategies on developing innovation-driven emerging sectors, such as new energy vehicles (NEVs).
Official data shows that over half of the vehicle market comprises NEVs in Haikou, ranking the first in China.
Deputy mayor of Haikou Chen Yang shared the city's experiences on how to boost the NEV market.
"The first priority is to enhance the infrastructure for electric vehicle applications, especially charging stations. The second priority is to improve the electric vehicle industry chain. The reason why China's electric vehicle market demonstrates strong competitiveness globally is due to the advantage of China's robust supply chain," said Chen.
"China is doing such a great job. I think we need to promote their success by bringing some of their vehicles to the United States and Europe," admired Dick Muri, mayor of Steilacoom, a town in Pierce County, Washington, the United States.
Mayors from different cities are also working on their creative and innovative plans, based on local specialties, to attract tourists and expand cooperation with other cities.
As China further opens up, they expressed eagerness to further cooperate with Chinese cities to boost economic development.
"I think it's a month ago we signed with Shenzhou city, another sister city. We have two sister cities in China. More so is to enhance on the tourism and the empowerment of our young people," said Constance Nalishebo Muleabai, mayor of Livingstone, Zambia.
"Now this is our first time to come to Hainan Province and we look forward to creating another relationship with a city in Hainan," said Abdallah Said Mtinika, mayor of Temeke, Tanzania.
A couple of mayors who joined the conversation online included those from the United States, Italy, Germany, New Zealand, among others.
Twenty mayors across world exchange insights on city governance, development in China's Haikou
