Location
South-east coast of China, north-west of Shanghai.
Population: 6 million
Area: 1,650 km²
Background
Suzhou is one of China's largest cities and is well-known as much for its wealth of culture as it is for its importance place in international trade. Suzhou is known as the 'Venice of the East' due to its beautiful canals, lakes and gardens with intricate waterways situated throughout the city. Due to its wealth of history of over 2,500 years, Suzhou is home to 487 cultural relics under protection with nine locations listed in the World Cultural Heritage. With an hours travelling distance to Shanghai, Suzhou is a desirable location to visit and do business.
Industry
Suzhou is a progressive city in terms of the development of industry. Suzhou's main components of industry are secondary - 65% and tertiary 32% and it is a target for large amounts of foreign investment, with over 90 Fortune 500 companies already established within its industrial zones. Suzhou is one of China's largest destinations for foreign investment and trade. The key industries for Suzhou are tourism, banking and trade, manufacturing, real estate and construction.
Education
Suzhou has 237,000 junior high school students, 122, 000 high school students and around 210,00 students undertaking vocational and university education. Suzhou is planning to send government staff and company managers to Logan City for short-term training programs in a partnership between Griffith University and Logan City Council.
Exchanges with Logan City
More than 20 delegations fro Suzhou have visited Logan City since 2001, showing great interest in the establishment of friendly relations and the sharing of information on community development. In October 2002, the Mayor of Logan City lead a trade delegation of local companies to meet with representatives from Suzhou City government and industry in order to promote Logan City and local businesses. The Mayor of Suzhou City made a special visit to Logan City in early 2003. In 2003 several other Logan City businesses and artists visited Suzhou to display their products.
In 2005 a second Logan City trade delegation visited Suzhou City at which time Suzhou and Logan City proposed a Friendship City agreement with a view to strengthen the ties of exchange between the two cities.
Related links
Suzhou City