Visit of the Chinese Delegation from Siyang to Italy

From 12 to 18 April 2010 the Government of Siyang County in Jiangsu Province, Eastern China,   sent a delegation of senior officials to Italy in order to strengthen cooperation and knowledge transfer between China and Italy in the field of cultivation, management and use of the poplar tree.

The Chinese delegation was hosted by the National Poplar Commission Italy and by the FAO-Italy Project GCP/INT/059/ITA that, under the supervision of the Secretariat of the International Poplar Commission and with the logistic support of the Corpo Forestale dello Stato, organized and sponsored a study tour through the poplar cultivations of Italy.

 The delegation was led by the mayor of Siyang and visited the International Poplar Commission, a technical statutory body of FAO, the National Poplar Institute of Italy in Casale Monferrato, and met representatives of the National Poplar Commission of Italy. The Chinese delegation established a long-term partnership with the Italian county of Pavia, where poplar is widely used, as a symbol of mutual friendship and cooperation. This partnership was formalized through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Chinese and the Italian side. As a gesture of appreciation, the Government of Siyang in turn invited FAO-IPC officers, Italian poplar experts and the mayor of the elected partnership-town to visit Siyang on the occasion of the 3rd International Poplar Conference and Poplar Festival held from 28^th  to 30^th  May 2010.

 The members of the Chinese delegation were:  

1. Mr. Shen Zhao, Chairman of the County Council; Siyang County;  
2. Mr. Jiaxing Hu, General Manager of the Pan Woods Company;
3. Mr. Xiaoyu Wu, Member of the County Council and Director of Public Relations;
4. Mr. Dongcheng Wang, Director of Broadcasting, Television, and Cultural Affairs;
5. Mr. Houzhu Liu, Deputy Director of Office, Siyang County Council;
6. Prof. Dr. Shengzuo Fang, Vice Dean, College of Forest Resources and Environment, Nanjing Forestry University.