The 2020 BRLC Committee Meeting was held via video teleconference on August 20th 2020. Nearly 90 participants signed up for the meeting, including Song Jingwu, UCLG ASPAC Co-president and Vice President of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, Dr. Bernadia, UCLG ASPAC Secretary General, Maria Moreni, the President of Italy-China Link Association, representatives of local foreign affairs offices and associations for friendship with foreign countries in China, and representatives of UCLG ASPAC members and committee members of BRLC.

At the meeting, Zhou Shu, BRLC Secretary General and Director of the Foreign Affairs Office of Hangzhou Municipal Government, reported the work of the BRLC. Since last year, the BRLC, guided by the “open, cooperative, sharing and win-win” tenet, has actively pooled resources for innovation and entrepreneurship by setting up platforms for exchanges and cooperation, enhanced internal construction by improving its working mechanisms to make it more significant, facilitated international cooperation to fight the epidemic together and encouraged online exchanges, tightening bonds among its members.

UCLG-ASPAC Secretary General Dr. Bernadia said SMEs of many countries did not keep close communication with each other through online platforms, but now more and more people are stepping onto the “online communication” track. We need to think about what we should do in the future and have a clear vision for the future to create more new ideas that will diversify the functions of the BRLC and contribute more to the world.

Song Jingwu, UCLG-ASPAC Co-president and Vice President of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, expressed his hope for the future that the member cities of the BRLC will take full advantage of the platform to further mutual communication and understanding, continue to play their role in facilitating communication among members, organize “cloud” activities, and share experiences in combating the epidemic, so as to promote cooperation and practical exchanges in multiple fields among local governments along the “Belt and Road”.

As co-president of the BRLC and President of Italy-China Link Association, Madam Maria Moreni is proactive in promoting and participating in the work of the BRLC and has recommended several Italian cities and institutions to join the BRLC, contributing greatly to the BRLC's growth. She said she has fallen in love with China since the first cooperation, and hopes that members will share resources and present talents exchange and other projects to governments, enterprises and universities to propel learning and exchange and achieve fruitful development results together.

On invitation, representatives from the BRLC's partners School of International Education, Hangzhou Normal University and Hangzhou also shared the results of their projects within the “Belt and Road” local cooperation framework.

Over the three years since its inception, BRLC has been active in promoting mutual understanding among the members of the UCLG, especially in Asia-Pacific region, and has become an important platform for UCLG to expand multilateral exchanges and cooperation among cities and local governments along the Belt and Road.

（Source：BRLC Secretariat）