Introduce more Sino-German cooperative projects to Yunnan

An interview with German Consul-General in Chengdu Klaus Otto Schmidt

For Klaus Otto Schmidt, German Consul-General in Chengdu, German cars in the streets, myriad imported foods at Metro supermarket and the Sino-German Dianchi Lake Water Treatment Project are good examples of friendly exchanges between Germany and Yunnan.

In fact, Germany and Yunnan have maintained a very close relationship for decades. As early as the 1990s, the world’s leading supplier of industrial gases, Messer Group, established a branch in Yunnan. Later, in 2011, Kunming and Dizenbach became sister cities, further promoting social, economic and cultural exchanges between the two sides. In May 2016, the German and French Visa centres opened in Kunming, while only two months ago, the Kunming-Germany Cultural Exchange Centre was set up on Caiyun Lane. German-Yunnan exchanges and cooperation extends from economics to culture to education and other fields.

In 2016, Yunnan and Germany maintained good momentum in their economic and trade cooperation, increasing their shared trade volume to 270 million US dollars. Data from the Yunnan Provincial Department of Commerce shows that Yunnan achieved exports of 130 million US dollars and imports of 140 million US dollars in its trade with Germany last year.

However, Mr. Schmidt found the cooperation and exchanges between Yunnan and Germany inadequate. On February 16, Mr. Schmidt came to Kunming to show support for the German Energy Transformation Multimedia Exhibition. “Currently, there are not many cooperative projects between the two places. The consulate will continue to help German companies expand their presence in Yunnan. We will vigorously introduce new projects and enhance exchanges at multiple levels,” he said during an interview with local media.

Mr. Schmidt is eager to see more Sino-German cooperation projects implemented in Yunnan. To this end, he brought several representatives from the German Consulate General in Chengdu to communicate with governmental departments and business circles in Yunnan. He explained that “Yunnan now attaches great importance to developing football. We will promote football-related exchanges between German teams and those in Kunming to provide young people with opportunities to train in Germany. German-speaking Chinese people will have more job opportunities, and we hope that more Chinese young people will be interested in the German languagge, German culture and German life.”

This year marks the 45th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Germany. Mr. Schmidt hopes to take this opportunity to promote Yunnan-Germany cooperation in environmental protection, urban planning, student exchanges, tourism and other fields. He welcomes new ideas for new cooperation projects.