Dutch Days and the 20th anniversary of the Consulate-General in Shanghai

Dutch Days 2014，Take a Look at Holland 

1994-2014: The Netherlands Consulate General in Shanghai celebrates its 20th anniversary

Dutch Days, an annual series of public and semi-public events initiated by the Consulate-General of the Netherlands in Shanghai in 2012, presents the best of what the Netherlands can offer to the Shanghai public.

After the seminars and networking events on top Dutch sectors in 2012 and the Dutch Days in Jing’an Park in 2013, the signature event of Dutch Days 2014, coinciding with the 20th anniversary of the Netherlands Consulate General in Shanghai, took place in the weekend of 12-13 April 2014 in the Shanghai Flower Port, known as the “Chinese Keukenhof”, after the world-famous Dutch tulip garden recently visited by Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan.

Dutch Days in Shanghai Flower Port

Shanghai Flower Port in Pudong New Area was established in 2002, following the example of Keukenhof Tulip Gardens in Netherlands and with technical support from the Sino-Dutch Horticulture Training & Demonstration Center. Every year the park imports more than 3 million Dutch tulip bulbs from the Netherlands. Windmills, Dutch styled wooden bridges and houses can be seen everywhere in the park.

During this year’s two-day Dutch Days (April 12th -13th), Shanghai visitors were able to embark on a wonderful journey through the Netherlands without even leaving their own city. In the Flower Port, filled with Dutch ambiance, visitors enjoyed authentic Dutch food on Dutch Street, traditional Dutch wooden shoes dances and the exciting Dutch Flower Fashion Shows. Children also participated in a mini outdoor orange football match. All visitors got a chance to win some nice presents. A day in the Flower Port, turned into little Holland, made visitors feel as if they were already in the Netherlands.

* The Netherlands Consulate General celebrates its 20th anniversary in Shanghai

The Netherlands Consulate-general celebrates its 20th anniversary in Shanghai this year. The past 20 years, some of the veteran staff have witnessed the consulate premises being moved three times, from a hotel room to its present-day modern office complex. Staff numbers have increased from single digit to 35. The consulate now has full-fledged consular, economic and cultural sections to promote goodwill between the two countries, support the mutual goals of economic development and cross-cultural understanding. Shanghai and Rotterdam -- the second-largest city in the Netherlands and Europe’s largest port -- already established a sister city relationship back in 1979. Dutch business in Shanghai has grown energetically and so far there are about 500 Dutch enterprises in the greater Shanghai area. Some 3,000 Dutch citizens reside in this metropolis.

Bilateral exchanges between China and the Netherlands go a long way back.  More than four centuries ago, the Eurasian maritime Silk Road already connected the two countries. In 1972, the two countries established full diplomatic relations at ambassadorial level. In 2013，the volume of trade between the two countries has reached more than 40 billion euro per year and the Netherlands has been the second-largest trading partner of China from the EU for the last 11 years. China has remained the second-largest source of foreign investment of the Netherlands for 4 successive years ever since 2010.

Sino-Dutch cooperation on agriculture, technology, water conservancy and many other fields is taking a leading position in Sino-European cooperation. There are 7 direct flight services connecting China and Amsterdam Schiphol Airport.

As we enter the 21st century, high-level exchanges between China and the Netherlands have further increased. Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, accompanied by Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation Lilianne Ploumen paid an official visit to China last November, where they met President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang. This March, Chinese president Xi Jinping, together with many Chinese ministers and a sizable trade delegation paid a visit to the Netherlands. He met HM King Willem-Alexander and Parliamentary leaders and held talks with Prime Minister Mark Rutte. This state visit marked the first visit of a Chinese head of state to the Netherlands since the two countries established diplomatic relations, as well as the first incoming state visit for HM King Willem-Alexander since his investiture. Both visits underline the excellent state of the relations between the two countries.

Shanghai has always played an important role in the relations between the two nations, both through the port links with Rotterdam and as a center for Dutch business in China. The city entertains a wide range of exchanges with the Netherlands, in economy and trade, personnel training, urban construction, port affairs, culture, education, health care, sports, and many other fields.

The Netherlands Consulate General in Shanghai will continue to work towards ever more mature and stable Sino-Dutch relations, boosting the mutual development of our two countries and contributing to peace, stability and prosperity.