On November 13, 2013, the Hon Steven Joyce, New Zealand's Minister of Science and Innovation (also Minister of Economic Development and Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment) led a delegation to visit the Fruit Science Institute of Zhejiang University. Prof. Kun-song Chen and staff of the Foreign Affairs Office and the Sci-Tech Academy of Zhejiang University hosted the delegation.
Prof. Xian Li introduced the 15 year- long partnership between the Fruit Science Institute of Zhejiang University and Plant & Food Research of New Zealand. Prof. Ian Ferguson, Fellow of the New Zealand Royal Society and Guangbiao Professor of Zhejiang University, who won the National Friendship Award from Chinese Central Government and the Westlake Friendship Award from Zhejiang Provincial Government received special mention. Prof. Ferguson has made great contributions to cooperation, academic visits, co-supervision PhD students, publishing co-authored papers over the last 20 years. Minister Joyce expressed a keen interest in fruit quality and security, New Zealand kiwifruit industry development in China, and scientific research cooperation.
Minister Joyce was invited by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce and arrived at Zhejiang on November 12. The delegation included H.E. Carl Worker, New Zealand Ambassador to China; Matthew Dalzell, New Zealand Consul-General, Shanghai; Andrew Falloon, New Zealand's economic development minister counsellor; Karla Falloon, head of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment; Rod Mackenzie, New Zealand vice Consul-General, Shanghai and Regional Director China of New Zealand Trade and Enterprise; Alexandra Grace, New Zealand Counsellor (Education) in China; Ivan Kinsella, New Zealand Counsellor (Investment ) in China; Amy Rutherford, China Marketing Director (Education Management); Shelly Xu, director of education in the New Zealand consulate general in Shanghai; Maggie Shen, policy adviser to the New Zealand Consulate General in Shanghai and Yusheng Gao, director of the Department of North American and Oceanian Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China (Accompanying Chinese officials).
Minister Joyce's visit was aimed at further implementing the third renewal of the 5 year Science and Technology cooperation between China and New Zealand which was signed by Vice Minister of science and technology of the People's Republic of China and Vice Minister of Science & Innovation of New Zealand in April, 2012. Under the framework of this agreement, research fields of common interest were discussed during this visit.
