The Eurasian Economic and Trade Industrial Park in Qingdao, Shandong province, has won international acclaim for its promotion of exchanges between the two continents.

The project came about after an agreement was signed by the Qingdao government and the Business Council of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in 2015.

The organization recognizes the progress the park has made. Sergey Kanavsky, executive secretary of the SCO Business Council, said the organization hopes that its members can reach more partners in multiple sectors via the international platform. He made the remarks at a meeting in Qingdao at the end of August.

Supported by the Ministry of Commerce, the park focuses on international exchanges with Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. It aims to become a model of business cooperation among the countries and regions involved in the Belt and Road Initiative.

To date, the park has attracted 21 investment projects from Asia and Europe, with combined investment value of 18 billion yuan ($2.77 billion)

These include a $100 million rail transportation research and production project, involving investment from transportation facilities manufacturer Bombardier, a $100 million agro-product processing plant funded by South Korean investors and Oake Intelligent System Co.

At the same time, a batch of parks funded by Qingdao investors have been launched abroad. They include an industrial park named after its investor and leading home appliance manufacturer Haier, and a comprehensive industrial park in Indonesia.

Qingdao's development dovetails with that of Eurasian economies and they have enormous potential in collaboration, local officials said.

As most Central Asian countries do not have coastlines, they are looking to cooperate with foreign port cities. The Eurasian Economic and Trade Industrial Park provides them with these opportunities, Qingdao officials added.

Revolving around Qingdao, a widespread transportation network facilitates international trade.

The city faces Japan, South Korea and the Asia-Pacific region to the east and links with Central Asia, the European Union, and Central and Eastern Europe to the west.

To the south, the port city is connected with the Indian Ocean and the Atlantic, expanding its reach to Africa and the Americas.

Local entrepreneurs are active in doing business with their counterparts from Asia, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region, investing in production facilities, logistics centers and e-commerce platforms.

(China Daily 09/11/2017 page24)