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Showcase for sustainable growth

By Ri Bao and Chen Xin (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-09-13 11:13

Zhang Gaoli (right), a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and secretary of the Tianjin Municipal Party Committee, meets Klaus Schwab, executive chairman of the Geneva-based World Economic Forum, in Tianjin on Saturday. [Song Ximing / for China Daily]

Tianjin - The Summer Davos Forum will once again put the host city Tianjin in the global spotlight and will further enhance the city's global fame, the city's top officials have said.

Zhang Gaoli, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and secretary of the Tianjin Municipal Party Committee, stressed the importance of the Davos Forum as a showcase for the "good image of Tianjin." Zhang made the remarks when meeting Klaus Schwab, executive chairman of the Geneva-based World Economic Forum, on Saturday.

"Examining our development, we find that an efficient development pattern and optimized economic structure are our top priorities to avoid risks and achieve sustainable growth," Zhang said.

"The Summer Davos Forum is a high-profile conference and is of great international influence. To host the event is of great significance to enhance foreign exchange and cooperation with Tianjin," said Huang Xingguo, the mayor of Tianjin.

Under the theme of "sustainable growth", this year's forum is significant as it is being held at a time when the world has entered a post-crisis era after the world economic crisis, Huang said.

"We are facing a historical turning point. Our economy should not grow at the cost of consuming our natural resources and destroying the environment. Instead, we should transform the development pattern and widely adopt low-carbon technologies to develop a green economy and enhance the ability to maintain sustainable growth," Huang said.

Tianjin is now fully prepared to host the event, Huang added.

"Hotels, traffic, conference venues and the city's appearance have been refined to embrace the forum. The forum will also go green, with the provision of good facilities, a healthy environment and quality services," Huang said.

Tianjin residents are enthusiastic about the forum and are eagerly anticipating it, the mayor added.

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"More than 2,000 residents volunteered to serve the forum. We have also chosen five citizens to participate in the conference. With the support of residents throughout the city, I believe the forum will be very successful," Huang said.

Introducing the 100,000-sq-m Meijiang Conference Center, the main venue for Tianjin Summer Davos, Ren Xuefeng, vice-mayor of Tianjin, said it had already passed a number of trials.

"We successfully held some large-scale conferences in the convention center, such as the 17th Tianjin Trade Fair & Investment Talk, for the purpose of trials," Ren said.

"I hope Tianjin will take this occasion to grasp every business opportunity and attract more people to invest here," Ren added.

It is the second time Tianjin has hosted the Summer Davos Forum and more than 10,000 participants from over 80 countries and regions are due to attend this year's forum. Among them are seven national and international organization heads, some 50 Chinese and foreign ministerial-level officials, 900 business executives and 120 media leaders.

This year's forum, falling upon the 40th anniversary of the World Economic Forum, is more eye-catching than ever before, Huang said.

Tianjin's economy rebounded quickly in the first eight months of the year, with a growth rate of 18 percent over the same period last year.

"Tianjin is speeding up the transformation from a traditional industrial hub into a service industry oriented one, while paying attention to protecting the environment at the same time," Ren said.