On 6 November 2021, “The Global Practice of Culture Industry Empowering Rural Revitalization--2021 International Cooperation Forum in Culture and Tourism Industries” was held in Shanghai. Mr. Gao Zheng, Director General of Industry Department of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of China, Mr. Jin Lei, Deputy Director General of the Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism, Mr. Pehin Dato Rahmani, Ambassador of Brunei to China, Mr. Djauhari Oratmangun, Ambassador of Indonesia to China, Mr. Raja Nushirwan Z. A., Ambassador of Malaysia to China, Mr. Thong Rathasak, Director General of Tourism Development and International Cooperation of the Ministry of Tourism of Cambodia, Ms. Li Yaying, Deputy Director of Education, Culture and Tourism Division of the ASEAN-China Centre (ACC) delivered remarks at the forum.

Mr. Gao Zheng stated in his speech that the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of China is working together with relevant institutions to develop a policy document on culture industry empowering rural revitalization, hoping to empower the protection and utilisation of rural human and natural resources with culture industry and contribute to rural economic and social development.

Mr. Jin Lei said that Shanghai actively explores ways of rural revitalization with the integration of science innovation, cultural innovation, and rural innovation, aiming at creating “culture and tourism villages” with Shanghai characteristics and industrial features. He hopes to further stimulate the vitality of the rural culture industry through this forum.

Mr. Pehin Dato Rahmani said that 2021 marks the 30th anniversary of Brunei-China Diplomatic Relations, and last year and this year are also the Brunei-China Year of Tourism. China has made remarkable achievements in poverty alleviation and improving people’s livelihood in rural areas, and China’s successful experience is worth learning by all other countries in the world. Brunei-China Relations will continue to be taken to a higher-level, including in the fields of culture and tourism industries.

Mr. Djauhari Oratmangun pointed out that in order to adapt to the recovery of the culture and tourism industries under the new situation, Indonesia has launched the “Clean, Health, Safety, and Environment” certification program. The rural areas provide rich foundation for the development of culture and tourism industries, and the culture and tourism industries offer important ways for rural revitalization, which can benefit more people.

Mr. Raja Nushirwan Z. A. introduced Malaysia’s active exploration of culture and tourism industries to promote rural revitalization and beneficial development cycle. He said that the connection between culture and tourism industries and rural economic development will be even closer in the future, and the experiences from Malaysia and China strongly attests to the wisdom of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s theory of development.

Mr. Thong Rathasak introduced the overview of Cambodia’s tourism industry and its future development plans, saying that as the response to the COVID-19 global pandemic, Cambodia has formulated all-around support for the recovery of the tourism industry. Cambodia has formulated a detailed plan for rural tourism, aiming to promote eco-tourism and boost the local economic development. 

Ms. Li Yaying emphasised in her address that the development of the cultural and tourism industries are important channels and effective ways to promote rural revitalization, which are conducive to building beautiful villages, protecting ecological environments, benefiting and enriching the people. ACC will join hands with all parties to promote the innovative development of culture and tourism industries for rural revitalization.

This forum is one of the official supporting activities of the 4th China International Import Expo, under the guidance of the Industry Department of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of China, and organised by the National Base for International Cultural Trade (Shanghai). The participants exchanged views on the Japanese Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennial, Gamcheon Cultural Village of the ROK, Argentina’s local practice of culture and tourism industries, Spanish characteristic wine tourism, and typical cases of revitalizing rural areas with cultural tourism in Jiaozuo of Henan Province, Fuliang of Jiangxi Province, Songyang of Zhejiang Province, Bama of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, and Aershan of Inner Mongolia, etc. Experts from the Party School of the CPC Central Committee (National Academy of Administration), Tsinghua University and Peking University elaborated on the trends and paths of culture industry empowering rural revitalization and the practice of the characteristic idea of rural innovation at grassroots level. 

Nearly one thousand representatives from cultural and tourism authorities, institutions, associations, academics and media, participated in the forum either online or offline. The participants shared their working practices and successful cases, explored the future development trends, and conducted extensive and in-depth discussions under the theme of “Culture Industry Empowering Rural Revitalization”.