In the 10 years since the launch of the Belt and Road Initiative, Jinhua in Zhejiang province has been committed to developing into an important pivot city for the initiative.

Jinhua has established trade relations with 233 countries and regions. From 2013 to 2022, its trade with countries involved in the Belt and Road rose to 1.73 billion yuan ($241.96 billion) from 627.2 billion yuan.

The first China-Europe Railway Express departs from Yiwu to Madrid, Spain in 2014. [Photo/Tide News]

Jinhua boasts more than 3,000 domestic freight lines capable of reaching 320 cities in China. It has 42 logistics parks and centers, with the scale and number both ranking first in East China.

Jinhua was listed among the top 50 cities in express delivery volume in a list released by the State Post Bureau in 2022, with its volume exceeding 11.8 billion items, ranking first for the third year in a row. An average of 30.35 million express deliveries was made to all parts of the country and the world every day.

The Zhejiang Wuju Opera Research Centre gives a performance at the Roman Theatre in Asmara, capital of Eritrea, in Sept 2023. [Photo/Tide News]

Jinhua has been focusing on cooperation and exchanges with the Africa. Zhejiang Wu Opera Research Centre and has participated in cultural exchanges overseas for the past 12 years.

Jinhua has expanded cultural exchanges and cooperation with countries involved in the Belt and Road to involve science and technology, education and health.

The first International Conference on Science and Technology Open Cooperation (Zhejiang) was held in Jinhua recently.

Zhejiang Normal University has established inter-university student exchange programs with over 30 foreign universities, accepting nearly 4,000 international students.

In September, the International School of Medicine at Zhejiang University welcomed 94 international undergraduates from 25 countries.