Gong Junqing, deputy director of the Jinan municipal foreign affairs office, highlighted the city's main tasks for 2021 at a Jinan municipal government news conference on Feb 23 to promote international exchanges.

Jinan will continue to work together with its sister cities and foreign organizations to fight the COVID-19 epidemic and promote exchanges and cooperation between Jinan and foreign countries.

Local authorities will host several important international conferences to promote more business cooperation and prepare for the opening of 2021 CICA Finance Summit.

The city will seize the opportunities brought by the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) to strengthen relations with foreign countries and international organizations.

Jinan will further improve the living environment for expats to help enhance the city's international competitiveness. The city will construct a batch of international communities. Some international gardens have been built in communities to showcase iconic landscapes from Jinan's sister cities and create a healthier and more natural environment.

In addition, more efforts will also be made to standardize the English translation of names in the city's public areas and create a good international language environment for expats.