Premiers meet with Shanghai Vice Mayor and Chinese business leaders as part of Council of the Federation Mission to China

SHANGHAI, September 17, 2012 – Premiers met today with Ai Baojun, Vice Mayor of Shanghai. The meeting focused on the importance Canadian provinces and territories place on their relationship with China and their desire to expand commercial linkages. Premiers discussed how to foster further growth in trade and investment between Canadian provinces/territories and China, particularly in Shanghai.

Shanghai and the surrounding Yangtze River Delta produce almost one quarter of China’s gross domestic product and attract 53 per cent of all foreign direct investment in China. Shanghai has a population of over 23 million people.

“Provinces and territories have a critical role to play in creating the relationships and conditions required for our businesses to remain competitive in the global economy,” said Nova Scotia Premier Darrell Dexter, Chair of the Council of the Federation. “We have had the opportunity to meet with senior Shanghai government and business leaders, and I know that our Canadian businesses will benefit from these introductions and new linkages.”

Premiers and delegates also participated in events hosted by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, where they were joined by prominent business leaders and senior representatives of several Shanghai universities.

The Premiers of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Manitoba, Prince Edward Island, Northwest Territories and Yukon are in Shanghai as part of the Council of the Federation mission to China, taking place September 10 to 20, 2012. A delegation of senior government representatives and business leaders from Newfoundland and Labrador are also in Shanghai as part of the mission.

The Council of the Federation comprises all thirteen provincial and territorial Premiers. It enables Premiers to work collaboratively to strengthen the Canadian federation by fostering a constructive relationship among the provinces and territories and with the federal government.

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For more information:

Jennifer Stewart
Office of the Premier of Nova Scotia
902-497-7198
[email protected]
Lindsay de Leeuw
Council of the Federation Secretariat
613-851-5978
[email protected]