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Two years after he wrapped up a Team Ottawa mission to China, Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson is returning, with a side trip to Thailand for the One Young World Summit — an international conference that Ottawa will host next year .
From November 16 to 19, Watson will be in Beijing with about 15 business representatives, where he is to speak at a seminar attended by more than 100 Chinese investors and entrepreneurs. He will also meet with municipal and cultural officials in Beijing, which became Ottawa’s sister city in 1999.
He’ll move onto Bangkok, where he will attend two days of the youth conference with representatives from Ottawa Tourism.
Since the 2013 trade mission, Invest Ottawa has sent 10 missions to China and received about 30 Chinese delegations here in Ottawa, said Watson. The mission has also produced millions in contracts for Ottawa companies. iNano Medical Inc., for example, which offers engineering and design services for medical device manufacturers, recently received $1 million in funding from Chinese investors and has grown from two to 12 employees since the 2013 mission, Watson said.
Meanwhile, the One Young World Summit planned for Ottawa in 2016 will attract about 1,300 under-30 leaders from 190 countries, and is expected to generate $2 million for the local economy.
“These achievements are not handed out to those who sit at home,” said Watson, flanked by Chinese ambassador Luo Zhaohui and Vijavat Isarabhakdi, ambassador of Thailand.
When questioned about going on a trade mission at the same time the city faces a $41 deficit, Watson said Ottawa has to continue to develop its economy. “It doesn’t grow on its own.”
No other members of council will be part of the delegation. Watson’s travel and accommodation expenses will be covered by Invest Ottawa and Ottawa Tourism, which are both partly funded by the city. Staff support is yet to be determined, but expenses will be covered within existing budgets and will be disclosed.
“There will always be people who don’t want me to travel to Stittsville because it’s too expensive,” said Watson.
Citizen and immigration lawyer Warren Creates was a member of the 2013 mission. He spent about $4,000 on the trip and says it was a “tiny expense” considering the contacts he made. The Chinese like Canada, and families want to send their children here for post-secondary education. After living in Canada, many Chinese students seek to remain in Canada to work and become citizens. It creates lasting multi-generational ties between Canada and China, including investment, said Creates.
Alec Main, the CEO of Graphite Software, will be part of next month’s delegation. The company’s security product for Android isolates a user’s personal data and apps from the ones they use for work — popular in China because many people use mobile devices to make purchases. In the past three years, Graphite Software has grown from its three founders to 25 workers.
Main has been to China several times, but he’s looking forward to being part of the delegation. Having the mayor with the group increases access to investors, he said.
“Being with the mayor opens doors.”
In October 2013, the Team Ottawa mission was expected to yield up to nine agreements worth up to $35 million. That included a letter of intent signed by the Ottawa energy-to-waste company Plasco and Shougang, one of China‘s largest state-owned enterprises, which wanted to convert about 3,000 tons of Beijing’s garbage into clean fuel every day.
Plasco was to build a waste-to-energy plant in Ottawa by 2016, but was never able to secure the necessary financing. Plasco filed for creditor protection last February and sold off its assets.
jlaucius@ottawacitizen.com
查看原文...
From November 16 to 19, Watson will be in Beijing with about 15 business representatives, where he is to speak at a seminar attended by more than 100 Chinese investors and entrepreneurs. He will also meet with municipal and cultural officials in Beijing, which became Ottawa’s sister city in 1999.
He’ll move onto Bangkok, where he will attend two days of the youth conference with representatives from Ottawa Tourism.
Since the 2013 trade mission, Invest Ottawa has sent 10 missions to China and received about 30 Chinese delegations here in Ottawa, said Watson. The mission has also produced millions in contracts for Ottawa companies. iNano Medical Inc., for example, which offers engineering and design services for medical device manufacturers, recently received $1 million in funding from Chinese investors and has grown from two to 12 employees since the 2013 mission, Watson said.
Meanwhile, the One Young World Summit planned for Ottawa in 2016 will attract about 1,300 under-30 leaders from 190 countries, and is expected to generate $2 million for the local economy.
“These achievements are not handed out to those who sit at home,” said Watson, flanked by Chinese ambassador Luo Zhaohui and Vijavat Isarabhakdi, ambassador of Thailand.
When questioned about going on a trade mission at the same time the city faces a $41 deficit, Watson said Ottawa has to continue to develop its economy. “It doesn’t grow on its own.”
No other members of council will be part of the delegation. Watson’s travel and accommodation expenses will be covered by Invest Ottawa and Ottawa Tourism, which are both partly funded by the city. Staff support is yet to be determined, but expenses will be covered within existing budgets and will be disclosed.
“There will always be people who don’t want me to travel to Stittsville because it’s too expensive,” said Watson.
Citizen and immigration lawyer Warren Creates was a member of the 2013 mission. He spent about $4,000 on the trip and says it was a “tiny expense” considering the contacts he made. The Chinese like Canada, and families want to send their children here for post-secondary education. After living in Canada, many Chinese students seek to remain in Canada to work and become citizens. It creates lasting multi-generational ties between Canada and China, including investment, said Creates.
Alec Main, the CEO of Graphite Software, will be part of next month’s delegation. The company’s security product for Android isolates a user’s personal data and apps from the ones they use for work — popular in China because many people use mobile devices to make purchases. In the past three years, Graphite Software has grown from its three founders to 25 workers.
Main has been to China several times, but he’s looking forward to being part of the delegation. Having the mayor with the group increases access to investors, he said.
“Being with the mayor opens doors.”
In October 2013, the Team Ottawa mission was expected to yield up to nine agreements worth up to $35 million. That included a letter of intent signed by the Ottawa energy-to-waste company Plasco and Shougang, one of China‘s largest state-owned enterprises, which wanted to convert about 3,000 tons of Beijing’s garbage into clean fuel every day.
Plasco was to build a waste-to-energy plant in Ottawa by 2016, but was never able to secure the necessary financing. Plasco filed for creditor protection last February and sold off its assets.
jlaucius@ottawacitizen.com
查看原文...
