World Cities builds on the experience gained in the implementation of CETREGIO – the Chinese-European Training on Regional Policy (2011 – 2014).
During 2014, CETREGIO activities focused on fostering decentralised cooperation between European and Chinese regions. The European Commission and the Chinese National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) selected three pilot twinning-schemes:
Twinning 1: Chengdu (Sichuan Province) and Lower Silesia (Poland), that means:
- Visit of Chinese delegation from Sichuan to Lower Silesia (Poland) from 17 – 24 May 2014
- Visit of Polish delegation to Sichuan Province from 22 – 26 September 2014 – Debriefing workshop in Chengdu
- Visit of Polish Delegation to Guangzhou, Beijing and Tianjin in Januray 2015 in order to explore further twinning partners
Twinning 2: Guangzhou (Guangdong Province) and Upper Austria (Austria), that means:
- Visit of Chinese delegation from Guangzhou to Upper Austria from 30 June – 04 July 2014
- Visit of Austrian delegation to Guangzhou from 22 – 26 September 2014 – Debriefing workshop in Chengdu
- Visit of two Austrian experts to Guangzhou in January 2015 to prepare activities for 2015
Twinning 3: Tianjin (National Central City) and Lazio Region (Italy), that means:
- Visit of Italian delegation to Tianjin from 28 July – 01 August 2014 – Debriefing workshop in Tianjin
- Visit of Chinese delegation from Tianjin to Lazio Region (November 2014)
- Visit of two Italian experts to Tiajin in December 2014 in order to prepare the activities for 2015
- Visit of Chinese delegation from Tianjin to Lazio Region (January 2015)
Despite these twinning activities, a High Level Group from NDRC visited European Union countries in October 2014. Chinese delegates travelled to the Czech Republic and Poland in order to explore future cooperation.
Moreover, in cooperation with UK Trade and Investment and the West Midlands European Service, the CETREGIO programme supported a mission from the West Midlands to Tianjin and Guangzhou (November 2014).