Secretariat, Taipei City Government

The 2024 Taipei–Shanghai City Forum was held today (December 17) at Regent Taipei. Taipei Deputy Mayor Lin Yi-hua and Shanghai Deputy Mayor Hua Yuan delivered the opening addresses. Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-An attended the signing ceremony for the cooperation memorandums of understanding between the two cities and delivered a concluding speech. In his remarks, Chiang highlighted the significance of the forum’s 15-year history, noting that recent challenges posed by fluctuating cross-strait relations and the COVID-19 pandemic did not affect the resilience of the collaboration between the cities. He commended both cities for their unwavering commitment to dialogue and cooperation, emphasizing that “The prosperity of the two cities means the prosperity of cross-strait relations. Dialogue is more meaningful than confrontation.”

In her opening remarks, Taipei Deputy Mayor Lin warmly welcomed Deputy Mayor Hua and the Shanghai delegation. She noted that the 2024 Taipei–Shanghai City Forum marks the 15th edition of the event and holds particular significance as the first in-person forum held in Taipei since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic. She highlighted this year’s theme, “Smart Governance, Sustainable Future,” and emphasized the importance of the forum as a platform for cross-strait dialogue. Lin also announced the signing of cooperation memorandums of understanding on smart healthcare and the  conservation of wildlife animals including red panda species, showcasing the sharing of experiences on urban governance and sustainability between the two cities. 

In his address, Hua recognized the substantial achievements of the Taipei–Shanghai City Forum over the years, with the two cities having signed 45 cooperation memorandums of understanding across diverse fields such as trade,education, environmental protection, sports, tourism, culture, and so on. He expressed hope for deepening exchanges and collaborative outcomes between the two cities. Hua also invited Taipei residents to visit Shanghai and affirmed Shanghai’s commitment to encouraging its residents to travel to Taipei, aiming to enhance people-to-people interactions  for the benefit of mutual prosperity and development.

Following the opening remarks, Taipei Deputy Secretary-General Wang Yu-fen delivered a keynote presentation titled “Taipei: A City by the Mountains and Waters—Urban Governance Amid Extreme Climate Conditions.” Representing Shanghai, Deputy Secretary-General Wang Wei-ren presented a piece titled “Implementing the Principles of ‘Green, Open, and Shared Development’ to Create World-Class Waterfront Areas Along the ‘One River and One Creek.’” The forum concluded with Taipei Mayor Chiang attending the signing ceremony for two memorandums of understanding alongside the two deputy mayors. These MOUs included the “Taipei–Shanghai Cooperation on Promoting Smart Healthcare” and the “Cooperation between Taipei Zoo and Shanghai Zoo on Red Panda Species Exchange and Conservation.” Chiang delivered concluding remarks after the signing, reflecting on the significance of these collaborative efforts.