Wuhan holds strategic river forum

Mississippi (America) Strategic Partnership Forum , previously held in Chongqing and New Orleans, will be held in Wuhan and will have an unprecedented influence on Sino-US collaboration concerning these two great rivers.

Chen Jinchao, deputy director of the Wuhan New Port management committee, said during a press conference that Wuhan will host the forum from October 10 to 12.

Nearly 400 delegates comprising of participants from Chinese and American government departments, enterprises and universities will attend the forum and share experiences in opening and development of hinterlands of the two rivers while promoting strategic cooperation.

Through seminars covering inland water transportation, modern logistics and regional economies in both countries, the forum is seen as a mighty endeavor to create commercial opportunities and exchange, to bond the two economies more extensively and intensively, and to promote all-round progress of shipping center construction in the middle basin of the Yangtze River in Wuhan.

The three-day forum will be conducted by several distinguished delegates, including Lois Scott, the city CFO of Chicago; Wang Zuwen, president of Dalian Maritime University; and Li Xinghua, president of the Planning Research Institute of the Ministry of Communications (China). They will address topics related to themes such as "shipping center, multimodal transport and construction of pivotal ports". This year's forum will also follow the annual routine of holding an on-the-spot investigation; a team will inspect the core port of the container area in Yangluo on the last day.

As the strategic point for revitalization of central China, Wuhan New Port has fostered a good deal of economic conservation with port and logistic departments in the United States, the Netherlands and Singapore over the past years. The Yangtze-Mississippi Forum is of key importance to foreign communications with Wuhan.

Additionally, a strategic agreement will be signed between Wuhan New Port and America's Central Port during the forum.

Both rivers serve a significant role in their respective country. The Yangtze River, the longest river in China, is home to the heaviest shipping traffic worldwide. The Mississippi River, the longest river in the US, ranks second. The river conference was organized to bring together the world's top professionals in all aspects of inland / river transportation, including more than 250 private sector, government and academic participants.