Dutch Orange Community Founded in City

Authors： Li Gen

The Dutch Orange Community was launched March 8 in Chengdu.

The organization, a new business platform and referral network, was initiated by the Dutch community under the guidance of the Netherlands Business Support Offices (NBSO) Chengdu and AboutAsia, an Amsterdam-based cultural and business consulting company.

The event was opened by Messrs. Ed Kronenburg, Dutch Ambassador to China, and Koen Sizoo, Consul General of the Consulate General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Chongqing. Mr. Kronenburg addressed the attendees that with more and more foreign companies developing in China, cities in western China represented by Chengdu are now investment hotspots for different countries, and that's one of the major reasons why he made a special trip here.

At the launch ceremony, five foreign business representatives from Chengdu, including Mr. Jordan Porter, Founder of Chengdu Food Tours, Ms. Amaia Garcia, Co-initiator of Never Eat Alone, and Mr. Ivo Schalkwijk, Project Manager of AboutAsia, delivered speeches. Mr. Schalkwijk said that Chengdu and the Netherlands are both home to roughly 16 million population each. Recent years have seen increasingly closer economic and trade ties with rapid progress between the two sides. The Orange Community is dedicated to enabling its members to develop long-term and mutually beneficial relationships among themselves.

The first regular breakfast session of the Orange Community is scheduled on 14 March, and from that moment onwards it will be hosted on a weekly basis at Oakwood Residence Funder Chengdu.