Delegation Led by Rudolf Scharping Visits Zhonglou District for Exchange and Cooperation
On the afternoon of 23 May 2026, a delegation led by Rudolf Scharping — former German Federal Minister of Defence, former Chairman of the SPD (Social Democratic Party of Germany), and Chairman of Rudolf Scharping Consulting (Beijing) Co., Ltd. — visited Zhonglou District, Changzhou for exchanges.
The delegation toured the China-Austria (Changzhou) Innovation Center, gaining a detailed understanding of the development and operation of this science and technology innovation platform. A thematic symposium was held afterwards. Yao Cheng, Executive Deputy District Chief of Zhonglou District, along with relevant officials from the District Commerce Bureau, Science and Technology Bureau, and Wuxing Subdistrict, as well as government and business representatives, attended the meeting. Participants discussed new pathways for practical cooperation, focusing on industrial alignment, talent cultivation, and cultural and sports exchanges between China, Germany, and German-speaking regions.
During the symposium, district leaders extended a warm welcome to Rudolf Scharping and his delegation, introducing Zhonglou District's development endowments and industrial strengths. As a core urban district of Changzhou, Zhonglou contributes approximately 10% of the city's GDP while occupying only 2% of its land area and housing 12% of its population, demonstrating outstanding economic quality and efficiency. In recent years, the district has closely aligned with Changzhou's "1028" industrial system plan, focusing on building its own "3312" industrial framework. While deepening traditional advantageous industries such as power transmission and transformation, as well as new energy vehicle components, Zhonglou has leveraged the city's sole Digital Economy Industrial Park to host three major digital platforms: Industrial Cloud, Government Cloud, and Health Cloud, fostering robust momentum in the digital economy.
Furthermore, Zhonglou boasts a profound cultural heritage as a renowned hub for "Red Culture". It also has a solid foundation for cooperation with Germany. The district is home to numerous high-quality German-invested enterprises and hosts the Borussia Dortmund International Football Academy. Additionally, leveraging the Vocational Education Town to deepen the integration of industry and education, Zhonglou builds up solid comprehensive strengths for all-round exchanges and cooperation with Germany.
Mr. Scharping fully recognised Zhonglou District's industrial strength and dynamic openness. He pointed out that German enterprises are shifting their footprint in China from traditional production facilities to technological R&D and innovation synergy, a trend that aligns perfectly with Zhonglou's strengths in artificial intelligence, digital information technology, and other sectors. He expressed strong support for expanding bilateral exchanges into cultural realms such as football, arts, and music. Meanwhile, he emphasized the need to establish transparent and efficient institutionalised cooperation channels to facilitate the sharing of technology and information.
Furthermore, Mr. Scharping paid close attention to the development of regional vocational education, enquiring in detail about the layout for training applied technical talents. He also expressed a keen interest in learning more about the planning of Changzhou Vocational Education Town and local schools, as well as comprehensive supporting facilities in infrastructure, culture, and healthcare. This will enable a comprehensive assessment of the district's "soft environment" and "hard power" as a prime investment destination.
Mr. Hu, an entrepreneur representative at the meeting, stated that foreign investment in China is entering a new phase of transformation and upgrading. Moving forward, he believes enterprises should leverage China's complete industrial supply chains and cutting-edge technologies, while synergising with European platform resources, to pursue a path combining "Made in China" with "Intelligent Manufacturing in China". This approach aims to elevate the cooperation model from "In China, For China" to "In China, For the World", jointly exploring international markets.
This exchange has established an efficient bridge for dialogue, with both sides reaching a preliminary consensus on cooperation. Moving forward, the two parties will focus on key areas such as industrial innovation, joint talent development, and cultural and sports exchanges, to ensure more pragmatic cooperative projects are successfully implemented and yield tangible results.
