12 December 2019, Magdeburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany: Premier Dr. Reiner Haseloff received H.E. Mr. Wu Ken, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China, for his inaugural visit to the State Chancellery. Dr. Jürgen Ude, State Secretary in the Ministry of Economics, Science and Digitization, was likewise present during the meeting from the Saxony-Anhalt side.
The discussion partners exchanged views on current political issues and bilateral cooperation between the two countries.
China is one of Saxony-Anhalt’s most important foreign trade partners. In 2018, goods worth almost 805 million euros were delivered to the People’s Republic, more than ever before. Imports also peaked in 2018 at around 1.6 billion euros.
Delegation and business trips to China take place regularly, most recently at the end of October 2019 under the direction of State Secretary Dr. Ude, who among other things took part in the opening of the investment and cooperation forum of the Chinese-German “Hidden Champions Qingdao 2019”. Representatives from Saxony-Anhalt will also be present at the annual logistics trade fair in Shanghai.
At the beginning of September, a delegation from the south-western Chinese province of Guangyxi visited Saxony-Anhalt to discuss future opportunities for cooperation.
In the office of the German Chamber of Commerce Abroad in Shanghai there is an economic representative office of the state of Saxony-Anhalt with a special range of services for companies from our state for market exploration and market entry in China.
Several investments by Chinese companies have been implemented in recent years. In 2013, for example, Greatview Asepctic Packaging started production of aseptic packaging material in the Star Park near Halle (Saale) with the support of the state of Saxony-Anhalt. Due to the good capacity utilisation, the plant has been expanded in the meantime.
In the state capital Magdeburg, a regular China regulars’ table is held.
All universities in Saxony-Anhalt maintain cooperative relations with corresponding institutions in China. More than 1,000 students from China are enrolled at the universities in the federal state, most of them at the Anhalt University of Applied Sciences.
A number of cultural institutions in Saxony-Anhalt also have contacts in the People’s Republic. A delegation from the China Design Museum was a guest at the opening of the new Bauhaus Museum in Dessau. The exhibition “Bauhaus imaginista” was also shown in Hangzhou in 2018. This year, the Michaelstein Monastery accompanied a double bass lecturer at the Zhejiang Conversatory of Music as well as some of her students during their participation in the master classes for double bass “Bass Europe Academy”.
The Kunstmuseum Moritzburg Halle houses the second largest European collection of Chinese coins. The special exhibition “China’s Money” took place there in 2017.
There are currently five school partnerships and three city partnerships between China and Saxony-Anhalt.
For further information:
Government of Saxony-Anhalt: https://europa.sachsen-anhalt.de/internationales/aktuelles-internationales-2019/antrittsbesuch-des-chinesischen-botschafters/
Picture by Saxony-Anhalt State Chancellery, I. Berger.
