Guangzhou tells its story to the world at Boao Forum

The city of Guangzhou took center stage during a special storytelling session held during the 2019 Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference.

With the slogan "Building A Cultural Bay Area, Sharing Development Opportunities," the session was part of the 2019 Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference that runs from March 26 to 29.

This is Guangzhou's second year promoting itself in the coastal city in Hainan province. This is also the second international conference the city has participated in this week, with the Guangzhou-themed panel taking place at the China Development Forum in Beijing from March 23 to 25.

During the session, 11 storytellers from Guangzhou explained their contributions to the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and strengthening cultural exchanges.

The storytellers included Chen Weirong, vice director of the Affiliated Eye Hospital of Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center of Sun Yat-sen University, who can perform cataract surgeries on over 40 patients within several hours, and King Cheung, founder of Cedar Holdings Group and member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. Cedar has grown into one of the world's top 500 companies under the leadership of King Cheung. King said that Guangzhou is Cedar's "promised land", as it has helped the company become the cornerstone of China's manufacturing industry.

Guangzhou has strived to promote itself around the world at events such as the World Economic Forum and Boao Forum for Asia, to enhance communications between Guangzhou and the rest of the world, and to showcase the city's new image. Since 2018, Guangzhou has held more than 50 storytelling and promotional events, inviting 200 participants to tell their own stories in Guangzhou. The stories told at these events have come to symbolize Guangzhou's rapid development.

The Guangzhou storytelling session, as a key means for Guangzhou to enhance its image around the world, was introduced at the 2018 Boao Forum for Asia. Since then, in addition to the government's promotional meetings, Guangzhou has been focusing on spreading the stories of workers, innovators, and foreign friends throughout the city to make itself heard around the world.