The culture industry sub-forum of the 2016 Silk Road Economic Belt and Xinjiang Karamay Forum was held in the culture center of Karamay city, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region on Aug 9.

Delegates included officials from China, Pakistan, Kazakhstan and Iran, together with some well-known business representatives, experts and scholars.

The forum’s theme was “cross-cultural conversation and industry innovation”, with the aim of improving communication between China and Islamic countries along the Silk Road. The forum hopes to build cultural understanding and promote cooperation.

Topics covered during the one-day session included the dialogue between Chinese and Islamic civilization, cultural diversity, enterprise development and cultural innovation, with participants sharing their opinions and experiences.

The forum was expected to boost the protection of cultural heritage in Islamic countries, as well as boosting the development of cultural industry through innovation, said Geng Jing, director of the China Cultural Heritage Foundation.

Muhammad Talha Mahmood, chairman of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Committee, said that it was of great importance to strength cultural communication between China and Pakistan, not just economic and trade ties.

Mahmood’s comments were further echoed by Ke Zhihua, director of the China Center for Friendship and Communication with Foreign Countries, who said that the current cultural communication and economic cooperation models were not enough, and that new ways of cooperating should be explored.

Karamay holds sub-forum on culture inustry. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Participants listen to the speeches. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]