New China strategy.
Tom McCabe explains how the 10-point plan will shape the future for Sino-Scottish relations

The emergence of China as a global economic powerhouse is changing the world as we know it. When I spent some time in China earlier this year, I couldn’t help but be impressed by the scale of ambition and pace of economic growth that I witnessed there.

Indeed, in the last five years, China has contributed more to world economic growth than the G7 countries put together. 

This pace of change and rapid growth means that none of us in Scotland – whether we are in government, business or education – can afford to ignore China. 

We must all prepare to respond to the opportunities and challenges that this huge economy presents the world. If we get our response right, Scotland and its people will benefit. If we don’t, we are in danger of missing an historic opportunity. 

Scotland’s friendship with China and her people is already deep and strong, something which we can build on. There is a vibrant Chinese community in Scotland and our people have been doing business in China for more than two centuries. 

Relationships have been established at the highest political levels and, since the first minister’s visit to China in October 2004, we have seen productive and valuable relationships develop, particularly in higher education, business and cultural exchange. 

Scottish-based firms such as Clyde Blowers, Howden and Caledonian Alloys have been blazing a trail in China, and RBS, Standard Life and Martin Currie have made pioneering investments in China’s emerging financial services industry. 

There are long-standing links in the field of education and science. Botanists from Edinburgh’s Royal Botanic Gardens have been active in China for over a century. The Scottish government has a memorandum of understanding with the Chinese Ministry of Education, and the Scottish Qualifications Authority is playing an important role in developing educational capacity within China.

Cultural links are just as important as business and education partnerships. Scotland has hosted some of China’s finest performing arts companies, including the Chinese National Beijing Opera Company, and an increasing number of young Scots are learning Mandarin.

But we in government recognise that, while Scotland already has expansive links with China, we need to step up a gear if we are to enjoy fully the mutual benefits this relationship can deliver. 

That is why last year, we set up our new Scottish Affairs Office inside the British embassy in Beijing: to promote Scotland’s interests in China’s capital and beyond. And we recently published our China strategy, which sets out a straight forward 10-point plan which will guide our national engagement with China (see box). 

It sets out where we want Scotland to be in 2010. We want to see more Chinese students coming to Scotland. At present, Chinese nationals make up the largest international student body in Scotland, with over 4,000 students in 2004/05, and we want that number to grow faster than the UK average over the next four years. We also want more Scots studying in China.

We want to significantly increase connections between Scottish and Chinese businesses. This activity will be supported by SDI, both here and in China, as well as by the efforts of others, including the China-Britain Business Council. And we want to work with China to address what is perhaps the biggest challenge facing all of us: climate change.

We hope to have at least 10 new environmental research projects involving Scottish and Chinese institutions set up by 2010, and over the next four years Scottish-based firms will support the installation of 60GW of clean coal/green power generation capacity in China.

We have also recognised that to get the most out of our relationship with China we must focus our efforts on several key regions: Beijing, Shanghai, Shandong, Guangdong and Hong Kong.

In August this year I travelled to Shandong, a region twice the size of Scotland, with a population of 92m, to sign a co-operation agreement with Governor Han Yuqun. Scotland already has existing links with the province. Glasgow University has a collaboration agreement with Yantai University, and Napier University has strong links with Shandong University. Standard Life operates in Shandong, as does Montrose-based IMT Marine Consultants who won a £1.4m to design four offshore support vessels that are currently being built in Yantai. 

Over the next few years I look forward to further strengthening the links with Shandong, and our other priority regions, so that together we can deliver real benefits for our people. But perhaps the most important factor in our engagement with China is for us to remember that government alone cannot deliver the deeper engagement we seek. 

Our role is to create an environment in which all sectors of Scottish civic life can grasp the opportunities offered by China’s new place in the world, and over the next few years my colleagues and I look forward to working with you to realise that ambition for Scotland.

Index:
• From the Executive: A new China strategy
• Scottish Networks International: A niche company takes on the China Challenge
• CBBC Service: Launchpad and Rep Office
• Scottish Development International: Looking back on SDI’s success
• Sector update: Financial services and energy
• Case studies: Holland & Sherry, Frank Sammeroff and The Edrington Group
• The law column: Understanding contracts
• Tourism: Ensuring that Scotland is always on the map
Review Interview: Brian Wilton on the origins and meaning of the Chinese tartan
• Local authorities: Which local authorities are working with China and what are they doing?