Chinese industrial zones to tap European expertise

The EU-China Urbanization and Industry Sustainable Development Commission was launched on Thursday to guide China's numerous industrial zones to seek technological know-how from European firms.

The Commission was jointly developed by the Ministry of Commerce's China Investment Promotion Administration, China Center for Urban Development under National Development and Reform Commission, and United Nations Industrial Development Organization.

The Commission will provide a platform for China's industrial zones to find European expertise in various fields, such as city planning, architecture design, industrial design, energy efficiency and environmental protection.

The set up of the Commission came at the 30th anniversary for the launch of the "economic and technology development zones". Since 1984, more than 200 state-level "economic and technology development zones" and tens of thousands of lower level zones mushroomed in China, which formed the backbone of China's industrialization and urbanization process.

Liu Zuozhang, an official from the Commerce Ministry, said as China's "economic and technology development zones" evolved, they badly need investment opportunities and expertise in high-end equipment manufacturing, biotech, information technology, alternative energy, venture capital, smart cities and energy conservation.

In 2012, China and the European Union announced the China-EU Urbanization Partnership.