Visit to Weihai, China

From 30 October to 3 November 2005 AUICK dispatched a delegation to Weihai, China. The delegation was composed of Mr. Kazutoshi Sasayama, Chairman, Mr. Yoshikane Fujimoto, Executive Director, and Mr. Nobuyuki Morimoto, Deputy Executive Director. Ms. Fu Zhaohui, Assistant to the UNFPA Representative in China, accompanied the delegation, which is highly appreciated in terms of the further ties with the UNFPA China Office.

Monitoring Meeting

In the morning of 1 April 2006, the AUICK delegation had a monitoring meeting with three Weihai officials who attended the workshops held in 2004 and 2005. Vice-Director General Wan Jianxin and three other officials of the Public Health Department also sat in the meeting.

Mr. Liu Qingsheng, Vice-Director, Weihai Family Planning Commission, attended the First 2004 Workshop on UNFPA Goals and Urban Policies.

Mr. Liu is in charge of the city population control and family planning education - conception-control prepotency research and management as well as evaluation of the effect of population control. His job is most related to the UNFPA Country Programs. He proposed that UNFPA China Office organize a joint campaign for AIDS education and counseling service to the adolescents in Weihai. The Secretariat requested Ms. Fu Zhaohui to convey his proposal to the China Representative for consideration so as to whether include the joint activity with Weihai City in their proposal for the next term of the Country Program.

Mr. Sun Chenggong, Chief, International Relations Section, Foreign Affairs Office, attended the First 2004 Workshop as an interpreter for Mr. Liu and the Second 2004 Workshop on AUICK Associate Cities Research as a participant.

As Mr. Sun is in charge of the friendly contact and exchanges between Weihai and foreign countries, he is working for AUICK as a liaison officer of the Weihai Municipal Government. He also worked for AUICK as a member of the Research Team which implemented the baseline survey in Weihai from September to December 2004.

Mr. Fan Kaimin, Assistant to the Director General, Health Bureau, attended the First 2005 Workshop on Adolescent Reproductive Health and HIV/AIDS.

Mr. Fun said that through the training course he gained much benefit: first, he came to know of the Japanese peer counseling; secondly, he acquainted himself with the HIV/AIDS status in AACs and the Asia Pacific Area; and third, he learned about methods to improve adolescent health.

Regarding the action plan he submitted at the First 2005 Workshop, Mr. Fun reported as follows:

"By the end of October 2005 we have finished the web of sexual education. On 29 October 2005 we held a square activity to advocate for adolescent reproductive health and HIV/AIDS. I have recommended to set a counseling institution."

Meeting with Mayor of Weihai

In the evening of 1 April 2006, the Kobe delegation had a meeting with Mayor Song Yuanfang and other senior officials of the Weihai Municipal Government.

Mayor Song stated, "As Weihai City has been attracting such industries as precision equipment manufacture and high technology from abroad which require clean environment, we place high value on the relationship between our city government and AUICK which has a broad and strong network among cities in Asian countries under the support of an international organization like UNFPA, and can be expected to propagate to the world that Weihai City has been achieving a remarkable development in harmony with the environment." He promised to continue the further ties with AUICK.

Preliminary Study on Best Practice

In the morning of 2 November 2006, the AUICK delegation had a meeting with Director Yan Jimao, Senior Engineer, Sun Pingyi and two other officials of Weihai Environmental Protection Agency for a preliminary study on Environmental Protection in Weihai.

Mr. Sun gave a detailed explanation on the current status and challenges on environmental protection in Weihai.

Mr. Sasayama commented, "In terms of sustainable urban development it is most important to make a land use plan with due consideration of environmental protection based on an accurate projection of population changes." Then, from his own long and abundant experience of urban development as an urban planner as well as the former Mayor of Kobe, he described how Kobe City developed the facilities for public utilities such as waste treatment, water supply and sewage, showing a land use plan of Kobe City.

After the meeting, the AUICK party visited a sewage treatment facility and a waste disposal site to study the current status and challenges of their public utilities.

The preliminary study found that Weihai City has attained a well-planned urban management with due considerations to the harmony of development and environmental protection which is quite useful information to the other associate cities. On the other hand, the AUICK delegation felt the necessity to provide more information on the coordination between urban the planning section and environmental protection section in its future workshops.