Networking at the local level

One example is Essex, a county north-east of London, which signed a friendship agreement with China's Jiangsu Province in 1992, and has since worked with Jiangsu extensively in trade, investment, education and culture.

"When we first met to explore opportunities, we realized that the two areas have common features and aspirations. Both regions have a large port with abundant logistics facilities, and both champion the development of offshore wind technology," says Peter Manning, head of international trade at Essex County Council.

In 1994, formal trade delegation visits between the two areas commenced on a regular basis. In recent years, two Jiangsu companies, Jiangsu Sainty Bancom Wood and Phoenix Publishing and Media Group, established offices in Essex. Several Essex companies have also established offices in Jiangsu, Manning says.

To support businesses on the ground, the Jiangsu provincial government and Essex county council have exchanged a member of staff to work at each other's offices.

Cooperation in cultural and educational fields has also boomed, with exchanges of students between local schools. The Jiangsu provincial government also regularly sends groups, 60 Chinese teachers at a time, to Essex to teach Mandarin and learn valuable lessons about a Western education system.

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Last year, Essex county council helped the Colchester Castle Museum host a temporary exhibition of Chinese artifacts that belongs to the Nanjing Museum, which created a significant boost for tourism in the local area.

Twinning with a Chinese province or city has become a popular method for UK's local governments to quickly develop targeted links with China. Examples include Sunderland with Harbin, Sheffield with Chengdu, and Nottingham with Ningbo.

In addition, local businesses and academic institutions also play a key role in helping local governments attract inward investment, offering valuable market knowledge and contacts.

One example is the University of Nottingham, which is currently doing research and development to help the Chinese automotive producer Chang'an upgrade its technology. This cooperation has led Chang'an to establish an R&D center in Nottingham, creating over 60 jobs.

The University of Nottingham's Asia Business Center is currently working closely with Nottingham City Council to draft the council's China engagement strategy, says a council spokesperson.

But the UK's local governments do not just work hard to attract Chinese investors, they do much more to help Chinese businesses to grow and prosper in the UK.

"We are keen for investors to grow, because that would create local jobs and drive the local economy," says Andrew Finney, councilor of Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council, whose team helped the Chinese telecommunications company Huawei extensively over the years.

When Huawei moved its UK headquarters from London to Basingstoke in 2003, Finney's team helped Huawei find a suitable office, accommodation for employees, and a location to host a company kitchen.

As most UK schools require students to register in advance due to capacity restraints, Finney's team worked especially hard with local schools to create extra capacity to accommodate the children of Huawei employees. Finney's team also made Huawei a member of its local business forum, which hosts meetings for businesses to discuss the growth strategy of the local area.

"Huawei became an integral part of our community," Finney says proudly, adding that witnessing Huawei's headquarters team grow from only 150 employees in 2003 to 400 now is particularly rewarding.

Finney adds that Huawei's contributions to Basingstoke go beyond direct economic results. "Firstly, as Huawei is one of the major Chinese investors in the UK, we can use Huawei as a promotional case study to attract more investment," he says.

"Secondly, the Chinese children made a great contribution to our local schools, because they demonstrated to some of our children that hard work does pay results."

However, as Huawei expanded rapidly in the UK, it had to look for larger office space. After realizing the difficulty of finding one in Basingstoke, Huawei announced that it would move its headquarters to Reading, later this year.

Finney says that the news is unfortunate, but emphasizes that as the council is currently constructing a new business complex, called Basing View Business Park, he hopes there will be future opportunities to attract Chinese investment.

"Huawei needed a building now, so Basing View's development was not quick enough to meet their needs, but the experience we have gained working with Huawei is invaluable and will come into use when we work with other Chinese investors in the future," Finney says.

Contact the writers at cecily.liu@chinadaily.com.cn and zhangchunyan@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 04/19/2013 page16)