Beijing's Zhongguancun Industrial Park in Haidian District was toured by a delegation of European leaders. The group, comprising mainly of young political figures from Central and Eastern Europe, was in China in time for the Young Political Leaders Forum of China and Central and Eastern European Countries.
The 16-member group of delegates was familiarized to what China has to offer in terms of entrepreneurial opportunities. The young leaders were amazed at how startups are nurtured and given an actual venue where they can meet like-minded individuals to share or even invest on business ideas.
Zhongguancun Industrial Park, a technological center and China's answer to San Francisco's Silicon Valley, is home to a number of establishments like the Garage Cafe and JD+ Milk Tea House. Both shops serve as a hub for aspiring business founders, product developers and investors.
Vice president of the Romanian senate Augustine Mitu was impressed at the sizeable number of industry hopefuls in just two locations. "I heard that startup founders could work on their project, demonstrate ideas, publicize products as well as debate and share experiences with their counterparts and investors," Mitu commented.
"I'm especially impressed by the technology presented here in the milk tea shop, like the smart refrigerator, washing machine and recorder in the future of housing, especially the smart music device which can recognize your voice and play the music you want," Serbian leader Goran Radosavljevic said.
"Beijing is trying hard to help startup firms and ambitious entrepreneurs through various policies, and this is something other countries should learn from China." Radosavljevic added. The Serbian Social Democratic Party vice president also bought a cup of coffee from one of the shops and jokingly credited the purchase as an investment to the startup.
The group was part of a larger delegation that accepted the invitation of the International Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee (IDCPC). The forum aimed to strengthen relations and understanding between China and the delegates' respective nations by a familiarization tour of the country.
The forum, which is executed every two years, targets to build an accord on concerns regarding innovation and progress by means of open, unrestrained discussion among leaders. It culminated on Oct. 30.