2024 has been an exciting year for the Ireland Sino Institute. In January, Chairman Pat McCarthy initiated efforts to establish channels for mutual development between Cork City and Shenyang.
After months of diligent work as a broker, facilitating cooperation between the Cork Chamber of Commerce, Cork City Council’s International Relations Office, and the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, Shenyang Sub-Council (CCPIT), the efforts reached a significant point in March 2024.
This led to a promising response from Cork City Council’s International Relations Officer, Mr. Ciarán Kelleher:
"We are open to considering mutually beneficial international projects which may serve as the prelude to the development of more formal ties"
The above two photos feature the delegation from the Ireland Sino Institute alongside representatives from the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, Shenyang Sub-Council (CCPIT).
In the medium term, the Ireland Sino Institute aims to build upon this promising development with the highly professional team from CCPIT.
Establishing a task force and allocating resources will help advance the relationship between Shenyang and Cork, potentially leading to increased trade, educational, and cultural exchanges, as well as the establishment of more formal ties.
Pat McCarthy highlights the attractiveness of Cork:
"Ireland’s southern region — including counties Wexford, Waterford and Cork — was the richest area in the EU according to recent research."
More recently, the Ireland Sino Institute was invited to attend the 10th anniversary of the establishment of China Queen’s College (CQC), a joint college between Queen’s University Belfast and China Medical University, located in Shenyang.
Belfast City Council signed a friendly cooperation agreement with Shenyang in 2014, with the relationship upgraded to sister city status in 2016.
In conversation with the warm, welcoming, and modest Director of the Northern Ireland Bureau in China, Kerry Curran, Pat McCarthy mentioned that he and his team look forward to collaborating with the Bureau to advance, strengthen, and provide sustenance to the sister-city relationship between Belfast and Shenyang.
Pat McCarthy commented:
"The sister-city relationship between Shenyang and Belfast offers vast opportunities in trade, culture, education, and tourism."
Pat also wanted to emphasize that his organization represents the entire island of Ireland, all 32 counties, and is committed to providing support for the Northern Irish community in China.
Moving forward, the Ireland Sino Institute, now in the second year of a major five-year plan, will further expand its non-profit work in rural Liaoning, where it has provided English education to 20,000 rural Chinese children, many from disadvantaged backgrounds, since 2012. The Institute has also awarded numerous scholarships to support these children.
Additionally, the Institute is making progress on establishing an “Ireland Centre” in Shenyang, focusing on education, trade, culture, and tourism initiatives between Ireland and Shenyang.
Throughout this wonderful journey, the Ireland Sino Institute has formed new partnerships in Ireland, Liaoning, and other areas across China, and looks forward to working with them for mutually beneficial outcomes.
- The Ireland Sino Institute is a non-profit, non-political organization headquartered in Liaoning Province
- Dedicated to strengthening ties between the island of Ireland and China through various initiatives
- Fostering mutual understanding and development.
- It is also registered under the Charities Act in China.
- It was endorsed by the China State Council in 2018, which is currently led by Premier Li Qiang.
