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10/11/2011 10:14:43 AM
This Wednesday, Lieutenant Governor Yvonne Prettner Solon will join lieutenant governors from Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Iowa and Nebraska on an economic development mission to China.
The National Lieutenant Governors Association (NLGA) will host the mission October 14 - 20, 2011. Delegates will attend the Canton Trade Fair in Ghangzhou then travel on to meetings in both Shanghai and Beijing. From 2000 - 2010, China was the largest contributor to United States export growth of any major trading partner. In that period, exports to China grew 468% while exports to the rest of the world grew at an average of 55%.
Lieutenant governors will meet with World Trade Organization Deputy Director-General Harsha Singh who leads world trade action on agriculture, commodities, the environment and services. The attendees will be hosted by China Commerce Vice Minister Wang Chao for conversations on bilateral trade and Swedish State Secretary for Trade Gunnar Oom will join trade discussions in Canton. At the China Import and Export Fair, known as the Canton Fair, the lieutenant governors will collectively have an opportunity to meet directly with trade leaders from more than a half-dozen Chinese provinces.
In Shanghai and Beijing, the lieutenant governors are scheduled to meet with Chinese leaders in foreign affairs, aviation, and education. Specifically, attendees and Chinese officials plan to discuss possibilities for trade and cooperation in aviation and approaches to science, technology and math education (STEM) at all educational levels. The lieutenant governors will also engage in a guided interactive exchange at one of the world's largest showcases of urban development, the Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Centre, and they will examine high speed rail travelling on the fastest scheduled train in the world.
The trip is hosted by the National Lieutenant Governors Association (NLGA) through work with the Chinese People's Friendship Association with Foreign Countries and the China-US Exchange Foundation. The mission is the fourth such NLGA mission.
