On November 12, Governor Zhao Long met in Fuzhou with a delegation led by Simon Sia, Governor of the Eastern Highlands Province (EHP) of Papua New Guinea (PNG).

Zhao highlighted the deepening friendship and the fruitful and wide-ranging cooperation between Fujian and EHP. He hoped that both sides would take the 25th anniversary of the sister province relationship as a new starting point to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, integrate deeply into high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, deepen practical cooperation in areas such as Juncao, poverty alleviation, business, education, culture, and tourism, so as to renew traditional friendship, bring more benefits to the two peoples, and help to bring China-PNG comprehensive strategic relations to a new height.

Simon Sia said that the China-aided Juncao and Upland Rice Technology Project has played an important part in local agricultural development and poverty alleviation endeavors, and thanked Fujian for its support over the years. He hoped that this visit will tap the comparative strengths of both provinces for greater cooperation in infrastructure, agriculture, forestry, fishery, and clean energy, in a bid to achieve win-win development and set a stellar example for subnational cooperation between the two countries.