Summary: The 2017 World Canal Cities Forum was held in Yangzhou on September 8th, 2017. Secretary of CPC Yangzhou Municipal Committee and Director of the Standing Committee of the Yangzhou Municipal People's Congress, Mr. Xie Zhengyi delivered a speech at the opening ceremony.

Mr. Xie said that 2007 marks the 10th anniversary of the World Canal Cities Forum. Although a decade may be insignificant within the millennial history of the Grand Canal, this decade represents a milestone in the development history of canal cities over the world. In the past decade, with the strong support of national ministries and national and international canal cities, the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal had gone from application to being recognized as a World Heritage Site, 35 cities along the Grand Canal have vigorously promoted the restoration of the Grand Canal heritage and the Huaijiang Ecological Grand Corridor had been implemented, therefore realizing the “Yangzhou consensus” for canal conservation. In the past decade, cities along the canal had fostered dialogue and cooperation and sought mutual development. Total economic output of these 35 cities had increased by 1.7 times and fiscal revenue had increased by 2.7 times. This represents a very important contribution to the steady and healthy development of the national economy and has given the 170 million people along the canal a sense of achievement. In the past decade, we have stepped out of China, faced the world and worked alongside world canal cities to publish the "Yangzhou Declaration on Sustainable Development of World Canal Cities". The number of participating cities in the Canal Cities Forum had increased from 10 to 27. We have connected 60 canal cities both at home and abroad to initiate the establishment of the World Historic and Cultural Canal Cities Cooperation Organization (WCCO). WCCO now serves more than 70 cities around the world, opening up a new chapter in the conservation, inheritance and utilization of the world's canals.

Mr. Xie pointed out that the conservation and development of China's Grand Canal is looking at a major historical opportunity. President Xi Jinping has made two important announcements on the conservation of the Grand Canal cultural heritage and the construction of the Grand Canal Cultural Belt this year. President Xi had emphasized that we must “protect, pass on and utilize” the historic and cultural resources of the Grand Canal. This fully reflects the Party's thoughtful and far-sighted knowledge of the construction of the Grand Canal Cultural Belt and points out the direction for the project. With regards to the construction of the Grand Canal Cultural Belt, Yangzhou should consciously assume the responsibility and strive to promote the cultural conservation, inheritance and utilization of the Grand Canal. Similar to its leading role in the World Heritage application, Yangzhou should strive to preserve the heritage of the canal, build an ecological civilization along the canal, develop canal cultural industries and establish itself as a national model for canal culture research and exchange. The city should continue to position itself at the forefront in the construction of the Grand Canal Cultural Belt.

Mr. Xie believes that the core of the Grand Canal Cultural Belt project lies in the “band” and the key lies in the “links”. Cities along the Grand Canal must obey and serve the national plan, strengthen the "banded" sense of coordinated development and make concerted efforts to work together on the "linkages":

The first link is protection. We shall establish inter-regional and inter-departmental connecting mechanisms along the Grand Canal Cultural Belt, synchronize overall planning and unify regulations in cities along the canal to manage the relationships between conservation and utilization, heritage and water management, cultural and shipping functions. Improved relationships will help protect the heritage of the Grand Canal.

The second link is inheritance. We shall join hands to explore the cultural value of the canal, build a canal cultural communication platform, launch a batch of canal cultural projects, revitalize the history and culture of the canal, export cultural products, share stories of the canal, promote the outstanding canal culture and present the cultural value of the canal heritage to the world.

The third link is utilization. We shall focus on the construction of the "Cultural Belt", work together to create our brand of canal culture tourism, develop canal cultural industries, build the canal cities belt, as well as establish a cultural industrial belt and economic growth belt in eastern China. We shall strive to build the Grand Canal Cultural Belt into a long corridor that runs from the north to the south and establish ourselves as a strong support for tourism in the country.

Mr. Xie said that President Xi Jinping had proposed the “Silk Road Economic Belt” and the “21st Century Maritime Silk Road” initiatives in 2013 and these had received a rousing response from the international community. The northwestern end of the Grand Canal Cultural Belt is connected to the “Silk Road Economic Belt” while its southeastern end is connected to the “21st Century Maritime Silk Road”. The development of the “Belt and Road Initiative” and the initiation of the Grand Canal Cultural Belt would become important bridges for the exchange and cooperation of the canal cities and a historic opportunity for coordinated development. The “Belt and Road Initiative” had originated from China and it belongs to the world. Likewise, the Grand Canal Cultural Belt is founded on the Grand Canal in China and will blaze the trail for canal cities all over the world.