The city of Fukuoka in Japan will send another business group to join the Kyushu delegation to visit Guangzhou for business cooperation in November, according to the mayor Soichiro Takashima at "Guangzhou Night".

The "Guangzhou Night" is a promotion event for Guangzhou held in Dalian, Liaoning province on July 2 during the 2019 World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting of the New Champions, which is also known as Summer Davos.

Soichiro Takashima, mayor of Fukuoka attends the "Guangzhou Night" on July 2. [Photo/Guangzhou Daily]

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the establishment of sister cities bond between Guangzhou and Fukuoka, said Takashima. "The friendship between the two cities began with the initial borrowing of pandas; subsequently, cooperation and exchanges have become increasingly close, and economic and trade exchanges have become more frequent; at the 2017 Global Fortune Forum, I came to Guangzhou and met with the city leaders and last year, the Guangzhou delegation visited Fukuoka and I met with the city leaders again," the mayor reminisced the friendly exchanges between the two cities.

During today's "Guangzhou Night", I once again met with the leaders of Guangzhou. In November of this year, the Kyushu economic exchange delegation, in which the Fukuoka group is a key component, will visit Guangzhou to seek greater cooperation opportunities for both sides, he said.

Fukuoka and Guangzhou have similarities; both the cities attach great importance on technological innovation. "During this Summer Davos, my priority is to promote the science and technology innovation development plan of Fukuoka".

When talking about the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, he said the Greater Bay Area construction strategy is an imaginative master plan as the region boasts great potentials. "The shipping industry is a key part for the Greater Bay Area, and Guangzhou, a port city similar to Fukuoka, will have greater room for development in the future under the Greater Bay Area development strategy".