TORONTO, Oct. 9 --- A forum jointly held by the province of Ontario, Canada, and China on Wednesday opened in the city of Toronto, with a goal to improve cooperation in science and technology between the Canadian region and the east Asian country.
With more than 200 Chinese and Canadian delegates entrepreneurs, researchers in attendance, the Ontario-China Technology Transfer and R&D Collaboration Forum is just one of the eight partnership developments and 15 incoming science & technology delegation meetings planned under the Ontario-China Research and Innovation MOU, signed by then premier Dalton McGuinty during his visit to China in 2008.
Organizers say that the forum, which featured workshops, speeches and other networking events aimed at providing business people from Chinese and Canadian companies with opportunities to share their experiences and explore future collaborations.
Ontario, situated in the east-central Canada, is the most populous Canadian region and home to Toronto.
Ontario's Minister of Research and Innovation Reza Moridi, who signed three partnership agreements at the forum Wednesday, said the signing of the MOU has fostered research and commercialization relationships in areas such as water, stem cells, neuroscience, hydrogen fuels cells, and also led to the establishment of a number of joint research and development centers, which have been instrumental in helping drive economic growth.
"Working together, we are creating the right climate for our innovative companies and talented institutions to succeed," Moridi said during his speech.
Fang Li, Chinese Consul-General in Toronto, believed that these collaborations bring out the best of both worlds and will lead to long-term strategic ones in the future.
"Ontario and China have a complementary relationship, there's a huge potential," he said. "In Ontario, there are many Chinese- Canadian experts who are valuable assets for the cooperation. Their efforts will make it much easier for the cooperation between the different cultures."
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