When Ahmed Mohamed Elsaid Soliman came to China from Egypt in 2010 as a student, he thought he would stay for no longer than three months, but he remains here today.

Four years ago, Soliman and two Chinese partners started Wisdom House Culture & Media in Yinchuan, capital of the Ningxia Hui autonomous region, which he named after the House of Wisdom - a library and translation institute founded in Baghdad more than 1,300 years ago.

The company has translated more than 440 Chinese books into Arabic and exported them to Arab nations, accounting for more than 70 percent of the Chinese-Arabic translation market.

The 33-year-old Soliman, now better known in Yinchuan by his Chinese name of Bai Xin, is one of many people in the city promoting the cultural industry in regions along the Silk Road Economic Belt, in line with the nation's Belt and Road Initiative.

Dai Xiaoning, deputy publicity chief of Yinchuan, said the local government is building the city into a hub for Chinese-Arabic translation and copyright exchanges, and is in talks to house the Chinese office of the Arab Publishers Association.

In addition to trade and cultural exchanges, environmental protection is also a focus of Yinchuan in its relationship with Arab nations.

As part of the 2015 China-Arab States Expo in Yinchuan, a regreening expo will be held from Sept 11 to 15 with the theme of "Green Songs Along the New Silk Road". Plants from 12 domestic cities and regions and a number of Arab countries will be showcased.

Other environmental protection activities between China and Arab states during the expo include an ecological protection forum and an event detailing China's efforts against desertification.

Delegates will be invited on inspection tours to see firsthand China's achievements in protecting wetlands and controlling desertification. They will also view the development of the local wine industry.

A sculpture park is planned for the regreening expo venue, and the government will invite 15 sculptors from the Arab states annually from this year to 2018 to create works with domestic sculptors. The project will "be a witness to exchanges between Chinese and Arab artists", local officials said.

"China's inland regions are embracing unprecedented opportunities with the implementation of a number of national strategies including the Belt and Road Initiative," said Xu Guangguo, Party chief of Yinchuan. "As the core pilot zone for the inland open economic model, Yinchuan is picking up its pace toward globalization and modernization."

Focusing on the initiative, the city government will host a series of events during the China-Arab States Expo, such as summit forums and exhibitions.

zhangzhao@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 09/09/2015 page6)