A Sino-Italian highland of scientific and technological innovation is a step closer to reality after plans were signed in Shanghai that will assist in driving Nanjing’s Lishui District toward being in the top 20 leading such regions in China.
It all began in March of 2019, when Chinese president, Xi Jinping, visited Rome. During his time there, he and Italian Prime Minister, Giuseppe Conte, signed a MoU that saw Italy become the first developed economy to join China’s Belt & Road Initiative (BRI).
Fast forward to this year. On 16 June, the Nanjing Lishui “Four New” Actions – New Industry Promotion Conference was held in Shanghai. During the event, China and Italy announced their joint efforts to revitalise their economies after the global pandemic. Therein, the Nanjing Lishui Economic Development Zone and Italian Chic Group signed a Joint Construction Plan for the Sino-Italian Innovation Town, officially launching the project.
Xue Fengguan, Secretary of Lishui District Committee of Nanjing; Zhu Kecheng, Chairman of Lishui District CPPCC; Xia Yun, Standing Committee Member of Lishui District; and other governmental leaders, witnessed the signing ceremony. Cathy Shao of the China-Italy Chamber of Commerce, Shanghai and Suzhou Office, and Cristiano Varotti, Head of China Desk at the Italian National Tourism Board (ENIT), as well as other major Italian company representatives, were also in attendance at the event. More than 150 representatives from government departments and enterprises participated in the signing of the joint construction agreement.
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Congratulatory video messages expressing full confidence in the joint establishment of the Sino-Italian Innovation Town were also shown, including those from Cesare Romiti, Founder and Honorary President of the Italy-China Foundation and former CEO of Fiat; Marco Bettin, Chief Operating Officer of the Italy-China Foundation; and Vincenzo Lipard, Secretary General of the China-Italy Chamber of Commerce.
Sino-Italian Innovation Town; Building a National-level Smart Town
The Lishui Sino-Italian Innovation Town, located in the Lishui Economic Development Zone, has a planned area of more than 1.2 square kilometres in proximity to the Sanshan Lake Ecological Park. Within the framework of the “Belt and Road” Initiative, the project closely embodies the rationale of strengthening economic cooperation in a setting that relies on strategic access to transportations, industrial agglomeration and the natural ecosystem of the Lishui Economic Development Zone.
Founded on the main pillars of Sino-Italian cooperation, the project will deliver a leading smart town set to become a key reference nationally for Chinese-Italian innovation-related business. The smart town will integrate R&D design, service support, business and office space for enterprises, but also lifestyle, leisure and entertainment options, with a view to favouring the integration of international talent by satisfying their career, education and leisure needs.
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Marcello Tsai, CEO of Chic Group, said, “Italy was severely affected by the pandemic and its enterprises urgently need to find a breakthrough in overseas markets. At the same time, China is taking multiple measures to actively promote consumption. Chic Group will also seize this opportunity to build a stronger communication link between Italy and China, contributing to a new momentum of bilateral industrial cooperation”.
2020 marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Italy, as well as the Year of Culture and Tourism between the two countries. In this framework, China and Italy undertake to strengthen cooperation and exchanges in the economic and tourism sectors to jointly address the impact of the pandemic. The Innovation Town lays a foundation for the project to set a new benchmark in national-level cooperation between China and Italy.
The construction of the Sino-Italian Innovation Town, the completion of which is expected by 2025, will be a key tool for promoting high-quality and state of the art development of Nanjing. The Innovation Town has been comprehensively designed and planned by the Milan-headquartered Chic Group, which will be in charge of the project’s investment promotion and operations.
