6 | DISCOVER Friday, August 13, 2021 DAILY Multiple offers students companies a link to various cultures

Many overseas students in Shanxi shifting to province have gained a better understanding of the province and China. This section, named innovation Shanxi in the Eyes of Foreign Stu- dents, will tell their stories in the By Yuan Shenggao province and share what Shanxi looks like from their perspectives, Executives at -based giving accounts of the local envi- Shanxi Electric Motors were ronment, customs and culture, as excited when the company well as their personal experiences. reported an unexpected perform- ance for the first half of this year. By Satya Grahat Maja During the six months, the A worker checks equipment at a textile company in Shanxi. The company’s products have been sold to company delivered 564 million more than 10 countries. Wu Liuhong / For China Daily When I was admitted as an yuan ($87 million) worth of prod- international student to Shanxi Back in 2018, I was the only ucts, growing 109 percent year-on- University based in the provin- Indonesian at Shanxi University. year. Its export orders amounted cial capital of Taiyuan, I realized But this situation offered me a to 51 million yuan, increasing 126 I had a life-changing opportuni- unique perspective to see how a percent. Foreign trade continues ty. “minority student” was treated in “Despite the COVID-19 pan- China is now regarded as one the school and how such a student demic, we have expanded in of the most dynamic economies could adapt to and integrate in European markets, with Italy in the world and that’s why so local life. and Russia contributing a vital many international students It was natural to experience dif- force for our growth,” said Board to triumph in first half choose to study and live in China. ficulty living in a foreign country Chairman Zhang Wenhe. Studying in China offers inter- at the beginning, especially being He said Shanxi Electric Motors national students an opportunity all alone. has adjusted its production plan to understand the country. But I immediately found life to meet China’s requirements in ties’ relentless efforts to promote tors to foreign businesses. I hope what I have learned here wasn’t that hard because I could carbon neutrality. It has devel- international trade. A sector that enjoys the most favor- can help me with my career easily get help from my teachers, oped a range of energy-saving Jiashida Robots based in the pro- able incentive is the importation of development as I plan to engage other international students and electric motors for the upgrade of vincial capital of Taiyuan is an exam- consumer goods. Provincial officials in jobs relating to economic and Chinese students. such industries as metallurgy, ple of how companies in Shanxi use said consumers in Shanxi can now cultural exchanges between my When I walk through the cam- coking, cement production and innovative, high-tech products and easily access goods, ranging from home country of Indonesia and pus, or on the streets or visit the paper making in recent years. Year-on-year growth solutions to boost exports. The com- food to cosmetics, in cities as a result China. suburbs of Taiyuan, I always meet “The products, featuring a pany secured its first order from a of more brick-and-mortar outlets I chose to study in Shanxi Uni- a lot of friendly people. They are higher performance in energy for January to June dealer in South Korea in July. being opened by overseas dealers versity for several reasons. eager to make friends and to help conservation, are being well period surpasses “This first order from South Korea and more online shopping channels First, the school has a curricu- me integrate into the local cul- received on both domestic and is a big deal that involves 3,000 new- supported by e-commerce platforms. lum system with an international ture. overseas markets,” Zhang said. 108%, reveals bureau generation house-cleaning robots, Zhang Li, a woman in Taiyuan, is a standard and very good educa- In my three years of living in Shanxi Electric Motors is just and shows the great market poten- follower of South Korean cosmetics. tional facilities. Shanxi, I’ve realized the province one example of how Shanxi’s By Yuan Shenggao tial in that country,” said Niu Liqun, “At the beginning, we asked our Another reason is that I want- is a perfect place to learn about advanced manufacturing sector board chairman of the company. friends to buy if they happened to vis- ed to find a place to live and study the history of China. Its great has grown vigorously since the Despite its status as an inland “The new product has been sold to it South Korea. Later we got the where not many Indonesians number of well-preserved histori- province began an innovation- province, Shanxi in North China has Germany, Japan, South Korea and goods through daigou, or online live. cal and cultural sites offers rich driven, high-quality develop- maintained robust growth in foreign other competitive markets only four shopping agents, based in that coun- I used to meet some friends material evidence of what the lives ment strategy several years ago. trade over the past few years. months after its debut,” he said. try,” Zhang Li said. “And now we can who had an experience visiting, of ancient Chinese people looked According to the Shanxi Statis- According to the Shanxi Statistics Jiashida was founded nine years get all the things here in Taiyuan.” living or studying in China. But like centuries or even millenni- tics Bureau, industrial enterpris- Bureau, total foreign trade during ago as the first home-service robot What makes Zhang Li’s purchas- their stories were all about big ums ago. es above designated size — the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20) company in Shanxi. Its products ing so easy now is the Taiyuan Wusu cities like , , While engaging myself in companies with annual revenue amounted to 658.6 billion yuan have been exported to more than 30 Comprehensive Bonded Area, which and Hong Kong. They studying the culture of China, my of more than 20 million yuan ($101.6 billion). It represents an aver- countries and regions. was approved as a pilot zone for knew very little about the rest of exchanges with other interna- ($3.09 million) — in the province age annual growth of 10.5 percent. “A highlight on e-commerce plat- cross-border e-commerce by the the country. tional students also help to deep- reported an average year-on-year The number of Shanxi’s foreign trade forms instead of conventional mar- State Council in 2019. When I entered Shanxi Univer- en my understanding of the growth rate of 15.9 percent dur- partners expanded to 188 countries keting channels is one of the major More than 1,200 varieties of sity in 2018, I realized the prov- cultures from various parts of the ing the first half of this year. and regions over the five years. reasons for our growth in exports,” imported consumer goods are now ince has a long history and a world. To some degree, Shanxi Meanwhile, enterprises in the The growth is even more impress- Niu said. available in Wusu thanks to the vari- brilliant culture. It has a lot of cul- University has built a bridge that equipment manufacturing sec- ive this year. According to data Another company using diversi- ous cross-border e-commerce plat- tural attractions and natural won- has linked me with China and the tor grew by 34.4 percent and released by the bureau on July 21, fied online and offline channels is forms. They also enjoy preferential ders. world. high-tech equipment manufac- Shanxi’s foreign trade totaled 113.03 Lu’an Solar Power Technology in duties of a bonded area, according to And Shanxi University itself is a turers grew by 36.5 percent. billion yuan in the first half, with a , it reported strong growth officials there. modern school with a lot of histo- The author is a student from Indo- Shanxi has a strong manufac- year-on-year growth rate of 108.4 in its export of solar-power batteries. In addition to e-commerce, the ry and cultural diversity thanks to nesia, who studies at the School of turing industrial system that percent. The growth rate ranks the According to Zhang Manli, an authorities’ efforts in promoting for- its large number of international International and produces such specialized prod- province third nationwide. executive of Lu’an, the company sold eign trade include arranging trade students. Exchange at Shanxi University. ucts as coal-mining machines, The export and import volume in 41.14 million batteries overseas with a delegations to visit various shows heavy construction machines, June reached 22.24 billion yuan, a total value of $30.6 million in the first and exhibitions in China and abroad. rail-transit equipment and monthly record. half of this year. The figures represent The China-Europe freight train equipment for coal-based chemi- Local officials and businesspeople increases of 67 percent and 100 per- service, which links Shanxi to 11 Province strengthens its cals. A range of these products said the brilliant performance in for- cent year-on-year respectively. countries through nine regular have achieved nationally leading eign trade is relevant to Shanxi’s While promoting exports, authori- routes, has played an increasingly positions. innovation-driven development ties in Shanxi have placed equal important role in boosting the prov- measures to control virus Since last year, Shanxi has strategy; a new growth model focus- emphasis on imports. Their efforts ince’s international trade. shifted the focus of advanced ing on both international and include simplifying import-related manufacturing to the so-called domestic markets; and the authori- procedures and opening more sec- Wu Jia contributed to this story. By Yuan Shenggao Shanxi. “We can assure that resi- “new equipment manufacturing”. dents can have vaccines at any “New equipment manufactur- The COVID-19 pandemic is designated site and at any time.” ing means to offer products and still rampant in the world and an The official said Shanxi has solutions to sectors relating to increasing number of cases relat- strengthened the whole-process new infrastructure, new technol- forges ahead toward ing to the Delta variant have management for vaccination. ogies, new materials and new been reported in China. In “There is a strict tracking sys- operational models,” said Zhang response, Shanxi is taking active tem for the sourcing, storage, Zhanxiang, deputy chief of the modern industrial system measures to control the virus and transportation and distribution Shanxi Department of Industry safeguard the well-being of the of vaccines to ensure quality con- and Information Technology. province’s residents. trol,” Feng said. “And there is also The official said the provincial Feng Lizhong, chief of the a tracking system for vaccinated government released a new Shanxi Contagious Disease Con- residents and their status of vac- equipment manufacturing plan trol and Prevention Center, said cination is shown on their health for the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021- Shanxi’s latest measures include QR code.” 25) on April 30. Shanxi was the effective management and con- The official said the province’s first province in China to issue trol of air flights, tracking travel- emphasis on vaccination will be such a plan. ers, monitoring fever patients shifted to the seniors, teenagers It proposed that intelligent Linfen aims to develop itself into a livable city with a pleasant ecological environment and an and promoting vaccination. and residents in the rural areas and green development should investment destination with an attractive business climate. Li Huwei / For China Daily While a majority of the adults during the second half of this be the “double engines” to drive in Shanxi have been vaccinated, year. the upgrading of Shanxi’s manu- Shanxi began to expand vaccina- To offer convenience to resi- facturing industries. By Yuan Shenggao process, energy management, logis- bureau, the city’s advanced manu- tion among teenagers aged dents, a number of makeshift When talking about intelligent tics and safety monitoring are all facturing and high-tech industries between 15 and 17 this month. facilities will be used for vaccina- manufacturing, Che Qingtai, The Shanxi city of Linfen is devel- intelligently managed through the reported increases of 136.5 percent “We’re aiming for 91.2 percent tion. chief of the Shanxi Academy of oping a “50-kilometer ecological use of 5G technologies, according to and 136.3 percent during the 13th of the population to have COVID- For instance, vehicles are used High-Quality Transformation and economic belt” along the Fenhe Riv- Wen Baogui, an executive of the Five-Year Plan period (2016-20), 19 vaccines by the end of the as mobile vaccination stations Development, said Shanxi will er in hopes of forging a modern company. demonstrating strong growth year,” Feng said. “And all the peo- and residents can stop by to be use 5G, digital technologies and industrial system consisting of the “Everything relating to produc- momentum. ple above 12 years old, excluding vaccinated when they spot one of the industrial internet to make eco-friendly and high-tech sectors tion is linked to a smart operational The city of Linfen is also using its those with special health condi- the clearly labeled vehicles, smart manufacturing possible. and offering new growth engines for center through a 5G network sys- high and new tech resources to tions, should be vaccinated.” according to the official. “Our aim is to realize a trans- the local economy. tem,” Wen said. “This is the brain of modernize its agriculture and boost Feng said the supply of vacci- formation from ‘made in Shanxi’ An important part of the Fenhe our group, which can save opera- rural revitalization. nes is sufficient in every region in Wang Pei contributed to this story. to ‘innovated in Shanxi’,” Che said. River belt is the Quwo Intelligent tional costs of up to 10 million yuan Linfen’s efforts, including farm- and Innovative Town, a county- ($1.54 million) a year while greatly ing modernization, have helped all Guo Yanjie contributed to this level high-tech zone featuring improving efficiency.” 10 impoverished counties in the city story. high-caliber intelligent resources The Fenhe River economic belt, to announce poverty eradication including two members of the Chi- which covers a number of counties last year. The average per capita dis- nese Academy of , 15 high- and cities in Linfen, is also using posable income of Linfen’s rural res- tech teams led by academics with high and new technologies to idents reached 13,782 yuan that PhD degrees and 16 platforms for upgrade local traditional industries. year. innovation. The Huozhou Coal and Electricity Linfen’s target for the 14th Five- The establishment aims to foster Group based in Linfen’s Huozhou Year Plan (2021-25) is to develop emerging industries and new opera- city is the first enterprise in China to into a subcenter city of Shanxi and tional models driven by 5G, internet develop 5G-plus intelligent mines. make itself a hub for advanced man- of things, artificial intelligence and Its 5G network has covered 100 km ufacturing, a demonstration region blockchain, according to local offi- of shafts of its coal mines, with a for cultural tourism, a livable city cials. depth reaching 800 meters under- with pleasant ecological environ- Jinnan Steel and Group is ground. That structure has made it ment, an investment destination among the local companies to bene- compatible with remote intelligent with attractive business climate and Two workers assemble a fit from the high-tech resources in control and enabled automatic a new hub for opening-up in Shanxi, helicopter at Taiyuan-based the Quwo Intelligent and Innovative monitoring of underground opera- local officials said. Zhehong Aviation Industry. Town. tions. Taiyuan residents are vaccinated in a mobile treatment Wang Ruirui / For China Daily The company’s entire production According to the Linfen statistics Wang Pei contributed to this story. station. Ruan yang / For China Daily

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