On May 27, Mr. Diao Ailin, Deputy Secretary-General of Guangzhou Municipal Government led a delegation to attend the “Seminario Cooperación Descentralizada e Integración: Nuevos Desafíos Para la Relación Bilateral Entre Chile y China” in Santiago, Chile. The trip was facilitated by Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Republic of Chile.

At the opening ceremony of the forum, Deputy Secretary-General Diao Ailin delivered a keynote speech entitled “Strengthening Regional and International Cooperation for Advancing Urban Innovation”. Mr. Diao also presented a promotion video for the 2014 Guangzhou Award, inviting the local governments of China and Chile to participate in the 2nd Guangzhou Award and related events, the 2014 China International Friendship Cities Conference and the 2nd Guangzhou International Urban Innovation Conference, in November. Mr. Diao won high acclaims from the representatives attending the forum for his gracious speech and invitation.

Mr. Gonzalo Duran, President of International Relations Committee, Chilean Municipalities Association spoke highly of the Guangzhou Award, “Regional cooperation is not just about cooperation in specific projects or the provision of technical assistance for regional development. Regional cooperation is more about coordinating international resources as regional development partners to make joint efforts toward common objectives. In this connection, the Guangzhou Award is a great platform and a truly successful initiative”.