Gyeongsangbuk-do is expanding its friendly relations of over 30 years with China’s Henan Province—with which it established sisterhood ties in 1995—into the fields of universities, youth, arts and culture, and future strategic industries, thereby laying the groundwork for practical cooperation.

Gyeongsangbuk-do Administrative Vice Governor Hwang Myung-seok visited Zhengzhou and Kaifeng cities in Henan Province from September 17 to 18, conducting high-level talks between local governments, signing university agreements, engaging in arts and culture exchanges, and inspecting industrial sites.

On September 17, Vice Governor Hwang held a meeting with Song Zhenghui, Vice Governor of the Henan Provincial People's Government, to discuss ways to promote friendship and expand areas of exchange between the two regions. He also attended the opening ceremony of the "Connecting Friendship Cities with Brush and Ink" calligraphy and painting art exchange exhibition, the "Yueqing Impression" themed market, and cultural and artistic performances held at the Henan Art Center, supporting exchanges between artists from both regions.

At Zhengzhou University, the two sides signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on cultural exchange and cooperation, deciding to promote cooperation in cultural and arts exchanges, human resource exchanges among universities and youths, and academic and educational fields. Through this, they laid the foundation for enhancing mutual understanding among the younger generations of both regions and pursuing sustainable follow-up exchange projects.

On September 18, he visited major industrial sites such as Zhengzhou BYD Auto Co., Ltd. and Zhongyu Aviation to examine Henan Province's industrial trends. He also explored multilateral possibilities for cooperation with Gyeongsangbuk-do's strategic industries, such as future automobiles, aviation, and robotics.

He held a roundtable meeting with the Tea Culture Exchange Association to share cases of commercializing historical and cultural resources into tourism and performance contents. He also consulted with the historic and cultural city of Kaifeng to discuss ways to expand exchanges.

Based on the discussions during this visit, Gyeongsangbuk-do plans to continuously discover practical cooperation projects between the two regions, such as holding joint cultural events and reciprocal visits by youths and artists.

"Gyeongsangbuk-do and Henan Province have been precious partners that have built deep trust since our sisterhood ties in 1995," said Gyeongsangbuk-do Administrative Vice Governor Hwang Myung-seok. "With this visit as an opportunity, we have expanded the horizon of our exchanges to universities, youth, artists, and the future industry sector, and we will continue to create tangible results that both regions can share and experience together for mutual development."

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