Plant Friendship, Spread Love, Cultural Exchanges and Promote Cooperation

Plant Friendship, Spread Love, Cultural Exchanges and Promote Cooperation 

Speech on the 2nd World Friends Day (Zimbabwe) 

Zhang Jingtao

Honorable congresswoman Dr. Betty, distinguished director of the National Tourism Administration of Zimbabwe Mr. Karikoga Kaseke, dear friends, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good evening!

As soon as I touched the beautiful land of Zimbabwe, a feeling came to me like an old friend! This is not only because of the friendliness and enthusiasm of the people of Zimbabwe as we got off the plane, but more importantly, we felt the warmth of old friends during the whole preparation time before we came to Zimbabwe.  We are very grateful to be here today.  I would like to take this opportunity to thank the executive finance director of the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority who I have met only once in China, and the excellent Zimbabwean student studying in china Mr. Lewis Manunure who has played a huge role for this day to happen.  At the same time, I would also like to thank the Chief executive of the National Tourism Administration of Zimbabwe Dr Kaseke and his wife Dr. Betty and Mr. Zhao Ke, general manager of Zhiwei Media Company in Zimbabwe, and all friends made this possible! Thank you for all your help! Your friendship is like a ribbon that ties us together. It is your friendship that brings us to the beautiful Harare in such a short time! What an amazing work you have done! We are not only grateful for this but also admire you from the heart!

The World Friends Day was born during The Belt and Road Initiative, new ideas for common development of the world, proposed by the Chinese President Xi Jinping. The Belt and Road Initiative is not only an economic cooperation, but also the Belt and Road Initiative of cultural exchange and friendship. It was in accordance with this idea that on September 9th, 2016, the first World Friends Day was founded in the Fiji republic. From then on, the whole mankind has a new common festival: World Friends Day.

World Friends Day advocates the unity and love between people, the harmonious coexistence between people and all things.  For the purpose of planting friendship, spreading love, exchanging culture and promoting cooperation. We are forging ahead with friends and peers, a loving heart, poetic passion and hope.  Today, we are practicing this purpose to make friends with all of you here; we bring Xiehe group charity donation worth of one million RMB of biological drugs, we come with China poetry Ten Thousand Miles and fellow artists here to exchange with local artists on the same stage; we bring to you He Zhong Holdings the most vibrant Chinese seeds company and hope for further cooperation opportunities.

There is an old Chinese saying that "all brothers are within the four seas", and the late President Mao Zedong, the late leader of the Chinese people, also said that we have friends all over the world!  All of these fully illustrate the value of Friendship as the Core of Chinese people. World Friends Day is willing to be a practitioner of this value and I hope all of you will join us.  Everyone is a part of human life. We may be small, but we are indispensable. May we all spare some passion and love! I believe our future world will be sunny and warm like spring!

Last not the least, I wish all my friends good health and happiness!

Thank you again!