Agreement Signing

Report by Vice President LI Yun at the Closing Ceremony

On October 3, 2019, NHRI Vice President LI Yun made a report at the closing ceremony of the PIANC-SMART Rivers 2019 Conference in Lyon, France. The report showed in detail China’s great achievement in inland navigation, the past, present and future of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, the Yangtze River Golden Waterway Project, the Yangtze River Economic Belt Strategy, and the advantages of Nanjing and NHRI as the hosting city and institution of the PIANC-SMART Rivers 2021 Conference. With the support from PIANC, the PIANC Secretary General Geert Van Cappellen and LI signed the hosting agreement. It is the first time that this event will be held in Asia, which will help to enhance China's influence on inland navigation in the world and further voice China’s opinion by telling well China’s stories. Meanwhile, NHRI will gain more recognition from PIANC and international counterparts.

During the Lyon conference, at the invitation of PIANC Secretariat, LI had a meeting with PIANC leaders, including President Francisco Esteban Lefler, Secretary General Geert Van Cappellen, Honorary President Geoffroy Caude, and the Chairperson of PIANC Inland Navigation Commission Philippe Rigo. They had an in-depth exchange of views on PIANC-SMART Rivers 2021 Conference.

SMART Rivers is the acronyms for Strategic Maritime Asset Research and Transformation for the 21st Century River Systems, originating from an Inland Navigation Cooperation Agreement signed in 2004 between America and Europe. In 2005, the first SMART Rivers conference was held in Pittsburgh, USA. Since then, this international event takes place every two years, under the umbrella of the World Association of Waterborne Transport Infrastructure, abbreviated as PIANC. The PIANC-SMART Rivers 2021 Conference is scheduled to be held in Nanjing, China from October 19 to 22, 2021.