A delegation of six people including Alan Winde, premier of South Africa's Western Cape, and another four-people delegation led by Tommo Koivusalo, director of the Economic Development Bureau of Vanta in Finland, visit the Jinan CBD in Lixia district, Jinan on Sept 24. [Photo/Lixia district government website]

A delegation of six people including Alan Winde, premier of South Africa's Western Cape, and another four-person delegation led by Tommo Koivusalo, director of the Economic Development Bureau of Vantaa in Finland, visited the Jinan Central Business District (CBD) in Lixia district, Jinan on Sept 24.

They visited the planning exhibition hall of Jinan CBD and were updated on the latest projects, enterprise settlement plans, investment promotions, and other issues. They also dropped by the Jinan Greenland Global Commodity Trading Hub to learn about the latest innovations in the real estate industry.

South Africa's Western Cape enjoys friendly relations with Shandong and Finland's Vantaa established a sister-city relationship with Jinan in 2001. Lixia district will take this visit as an opportunity to expand the channels of communication with South Africa and Finland, and further deepen friendly exchanges in the fields of culture, tourism, economy, and trade.

Meanwhile, the 2023 World Cities Forum and Regional Leaders' Summit commenced on Sept 25 in Jinan, Shandong province.

A delegation of 200 people also visited the Jinan CBD and the Jinan Greenland Global Commodity Trading Hub on Sept 25 to hear the latest updates in terms of project planning, enterprise settlement, investment promotions, and related issues. They also learned about the innovative practices being deployed to better integrate real estate and commerce.

Delegation members reportedly showed great interest in the latest developments taking place in the city, and said they expect to deepen cross-border trade between Jinan and their countries.

They also expressed a desire to introduce more high-quality products from around the world to Shandong and Jinan.

A delegation of 200 people visit the Jinan CBD in Lixia district, Jinan on Sept 25. [Photo/Lixia district government website]