The 20th Trilateral Local Government Exchange Conference was held in Kaifeng, China from October 17 to 20, 2018. Established in 1999, the Conference is an annual meeting among local governments of China, Japan, and the ROK and aims to strengthen the relationship and to promote trilateral cooperation at the municipal level. It is hosted on a rational basis by the Chinese People’s Association of Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), Japan’s Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR), and the Governors Association of Korea (GAOK). TCS has been participating in the Conference as an official observer since 2013.
Commemorating the 20th consecutive holding of the Conference, around 420 representatives of the three countries’ local governments and relevant organizations attended the event, shared best practices and exchanged cooperative ideas on various issues under the theme of “Establishing Northeast Asian Community of Common Destiny – Cooperation and Coexistence”. The Conference consisted of an Opening Session, Keynote Speech, and three Sub-sessions that each touched upon the topics of 1) traditional culture and transmission of civilization, 2) environmental protection and sustainable development, and 3) smart cities and scientific developments.
