On the afternoon of March 6, 2023, World Innovative Cities Cooperation Organization (hereinafter referred to as "WICCO"), which is being promoted by Shenzhen, other innovation cities and institutions across the globe, held a new event this year -- Innovation Policy And Practice Conference at Wu Zhou Guest House Shenzhen.

With the theme of "Advancing Collaboration on Scientific and Technological Innovation, Cultivating New Drives Of Economic Growth", the event advocates international and inter-city cooperation to enhance innovation capacity, shape development advantages and cultivate new growth drivers. Mayors of global innovation cities, heads of well-known technology enterprises, scientific research and venture capitals, and representatives of international organizations in China gathered online and offline to discuss innovation, seek cooperation, and build an international innovation ecosystem.

Yao Ren, Deputy Secretary General of Shenzhen People’s Municipal Government delivered a speech. He said that in recent years, Shenzhen has steadfastly implemented the strategy of innovation-driven development, established and continuously improved the whole-process innovation ecological chain, and accelerated to the global scientific and technological innovation hub. Today, Shenzhen's innovation momentum has been greatly enhanced, its innovation vitality has been fully unleashed, and its innovation ecology has been continuously optimized. In the future, Shenzhen will continue to create an open, just, fair and non-discriminatory environment for innovation and development, strive to break down barriers to the flow of innovation factors such as professional knowledge, technology and human resources, connect global innovation resources, fully flow innovation sources, and produce more practical cooperation.

Tatsuo Igarashi, Mayor of Tsukuba City, Mario Rubert, Director for City Promotion, Barcelona City Council, Kizō Hisamoto, Mayor of Kobe, Krista Adams, Deputy Mayor of Brisbane, and Michela Favaro, Deputy Mayor of Turin, those innovative city representatives, shared the city's innovative projects and applications, such as Scientific Town of Tsukuba, smart cities and new green and low-carbon technologies of Barcelona that is called the European capital of innovation, experience in medical care from Kobe, Brisbane's application of technology in life and health industries, and Torino City Lab and Torino Social Innovation of Italy. The guests shared their thoughts and judgments on global innovation hotspots, global scientific and technological innovation collaboration, and innovation and technological governance.

Representatives of well-known innovative enterprises, colleges and institutions also delivered keynote speeches. Wang Jianfeng, vice president and president of the Public and Government Affairs Department of Huawei, focused on the theme of "Continuous innovation, open cooperation, and high-quality development", expounded Huawei's observation and thinking on the digital age, and proposed three trends for the future: low-carbon, electrification and intelligentization. PwC's Global Technology, Media and Telecommunications Industry Leader Wilson Chow shared the trends of global technological innovation and economic and social development under the new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation. Professor Fu Xin, Distinguished Professor of the School of Public Policy and Management of Tsinghua University and Visiting Professor of the School of Management and Economics of the Chinese University of Hong Kong (Shenzhen), delivered a keynote speech entitled "Strengthening International Cooperation in Science and Technology Innovation, Looking Forward to the Future of Urban Innovation". Masakazu Takasu, a world-renowned maker and guest teacher of Waseda University in Japan, elaborated on the development history and industry advantages of Shenzhen's hardware supply chain industry, further highlighting the characteristics of Shenzhen's "global hardware Silicon Valley".

Under the active promotion of the Shenzhen Foreign Affairs Office, more and more cities and institutions with innovative endowments and strength have agreed to participate in the co-construction of WICCO. So far, 77 cities and institutions have expressed their intention to participate in the joint construction, covering 22 countries and regions around the world.