On December 3rd, the opening ceremony of the Third Workshop for Thought Leaders was held in Guangzhou. Pan Jianguo (Secretary General of the CPC Guangzhou Municipal Committee), Octavi de la Varga (Secretary General of the Metropolis) and Thomas Mxolisi Kaunda (Executive Mayor of Durban of South Africa) attended the ceremony and gave their speeches.

More than 40 guests from 25 cities of 19 countries and relevant world associations attended this event, including Secretary General of both the Metropolis and UCLG as well as 5 representatives of or above vice mayor title.

Pan Jianguo and Octavi de la Varga launched the unveiling ceremony of the Metropolis Regional Secretariat for Asia Pacific together.

The main theme of the workshop is Urban Regeneration: The way to Vibrant City, covering topics of co-governance of metropolitan area, co-development of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), regeneration of old cities, advanced technology and industry, urban regeneration and care for women and children. The workshop includes presentations, case study, round table discussion, Q & A with experts, field trips and so on. Further more, live lectures were creatively given to exchange ideas.