A city making its mark on the world stage
Many foreigners may not have heard of Hangzhou until it hosted the G20 summit on September 4 and 5 in 2016. In April this year, the Municipal People’s Congress declared September 5 annual Hangzhou International Day.
To mark the day this year, secretary general of the CPC Hangzhou Committee, Zhou Jiangyong spoke to an international audience of consul generals from 29 countries based in Shanghai, high-end professionals working in Hangzhou and other guests.
Zhou said that the post-G20 Summit era and the coming 2022 Asia Games which the city will host offer great opportunities. The decision to declare an International Day was a signal to the world that the city is open and embraces the international community, he added.
He was speaking at a ceremony that saw the inking of a series of agreements and memorandums of understanding to boost international cooperation between Hangzhou and the world in finance, manufacturing, education and technology.
Hangzhou major Xu Liyi variously awarded “Honorary Citizen of Hangzhou,” “Qianjiang Friendship Ambassador” and permanent residency to 19 expats who have contributed to the city’s development in different areas.
German gynecologist Kurt Lobodasch was made Qianjiang Friendship Ambassador. He has been a chief consultant at the pelvic floor center at the Hangzhou Women’s Hospital since it was founded in 2014.
The 73-year-old is an experienced doctor in gynecological tumors and urinary tract and pelvic floor reconstruction. For four years he has flew to the city every few months doing operations, treating patients and training young doctors.
“I’ve seen in this hospital big progress,” he said. “The amount of patients is increasing year by year. And we have introduced more modern operations and new instruments.”
In 2016, the hospital was accredited by the Joint Commission International, a non-profit organization that evaluates the level of service and management at hospitals outside the United States. It was the first city-level hospital in China to receive such an accreditation.
Hangzhou has a reputation as one of the most entrepreneurial cities in China. In recent years it has also become a paradise for foreign talent who want to start businesses.
Rondez Lucas, from Switzerland and who received an “Honorary Citizen Award,” worked in banking in his home country for several years before coming to Hangzhou in 2007.
In 2015, he quit his job as a banker to launch a new app, “Nihao” (Hello), to help foreign visitors with their travel and communication.
“I’ve always been entrepreneurial in my mind,” he said. “And entrepreneurial life is very difficult everywhere in the world.
“In Hangzhou, you see everyone is supporting the ecosystem. The government supports it a lot and you get easy access to funding and a lot of good talents … the mentality here just makes you feel you are not alone.”
He launched his second project in May last year. NiHUB is an incubator he set up in Binjiang District hoping to introduce emerging foreign projects and companies to Hangzhou.
The company has received 117 proposals so far in the areas of big data, artificial intelligence, semiconductors and alternative energy. Among them 16 have been successfully launched in the city.
“Hangzhou is a big incubator and that’s what small companies need,” added Rondez.
At the same time large local conglomerates are vying for global talents both at home and abroad.
Geely Group, established in 1986, has grown from a small local automotive manufacturing factory in Linhai City of Zhejiang Province to a multinational headquartered in Hangzhou with five R&D centers, five styling centers and 120,000 employees around the world.
“At first we bought technology from overseas,” said vice president Yang Xueliang.
“Then we introduced foreign experts and began to set up R&D centers abroad.
“Now we have our own incubator to attract international professionals and creative minds.”
In Geely’s research institute at Hangzhou Bay, almost half of the research engineers come from abroad.
“As we expand globally, our demand for talent is strong and rising,” Yang said.