Swedes take an innovative lead

King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden (right) is welcomed to the Swedish Pavilion as Deputy Prime Minister Maud Olofsson (second left) smiles at the site of Expo 2010 Shanghai on Sunday. King Carl Gustaf attended the Sweden National Pavilion Day as part of his five-day visit to China. [Philippe Lopez / AFP]

SHANGHAI - King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden was shielded from the local media on a visit to his country's national pavilion on Sunday to celebrate the Sweden National Pavilion Day.

Although it was the king's third visit to China, his appearance at the Swedish Pavilion was under tight security, and no local Chinese reporters or photographers were allowed to follow the visit.

The National Pavilion Day of Sweden began with a flag-raising ceremony at the Expo Garden for the king, Deputy Prime Minister Maud Olofsson and Chinese representatives.

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After lunch, Annika Rembe, commissioner-general of the Swedish Pavilion, and the deputy prime minister held a press conference.

"The budget for the Swedish Pavilion is approximately 150 million yuan ($17.5 million), which is the largest investment Sweden has ever made for a World Expo," said Rembe.

"In the pavilion, tourists will understand the spirit of innovation in terms of participating in interactive activities and seeing cultural performances."

The king and the deputy prime minister attended two forums with Chinese and Swedish business representatives, where topics such as innovation and sustainability were discussed. In the afternoon, they took part in the Spirit of Innovation Forum, called "Making Innovation Possible".

The forums highlighted a range of issues, including leadership in innovation, the future of innovation, innovation for better life and managing and financing innovation.

The forums were organized by the Invest in Sweden Agency, a government agency promoting business and investment opportunities in Sweden to foreign investors, and Vinnova, the Swedish government agency that administers state funding for research and development. "We need to be so much more innovative in the future because the resources that we have tend to be rare," said Olofsson. "We have to be more efficient in many ways - on how to travel, build and use energy in every aspect," she said.

A cultural program featured Swedish pop band Those Dancing Days, Swedish-Samian singer and songwriter Sofia Jannok and a fashion dance performance choreographed by Jin Xing, a famous Chinese dancer and choreographer.

This year marks the 60th anniversary of Sino-Sweden diplomatic relations and it is being commemorated in both China and Sweden.

"The Swedish participation and this pavilion represent the biggest combined effort of Swedish public and private interests in a project abroad. It is my sincere hope that this pavilion will be an important platform for further strengthening the relations between China and Sweden," Olofsson said.