Attendees participate in the forum at the 2018 Optics Valley Sino-International Entrepreneurs Summit, Wuhan, Hubei province, Oct 20. [Photo provided to China Daily]

The 2018 Optics Valley Sino-International Entrepreneurs Summit was held at East Lake High-tech Development Zone (Optics Valley of China) in Wuhan, capital of central China's Hubei province, on Oct 20.

Hosted by Optics Valley and the Sino-International Entrepreneurs Federation (SIEF), the summit was themed around openness, innovation, mutually beneficial cooperation, and the development of Optics Valley into a global innovation and entrepreneurship center.

In the past 10 years, the SIEF has hosted four major international summits each year in countries such as Morocco, the United Kingdom, France, Australia and China.

Optics Valley will be a permanent venue for the Sino-International Entrepreneurs Summit, which will be held in the zone annually, according to an announcement made at the event.

Attendees included Jean-Pierre Raffarin, former prime minister of France; Song Jingwu, vice-president of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries; Long Yongtu, former secretary-general of the Boao Forum for Asia, and representatives from government and Fortune 500 companies.

At the event, Raffarin and Chen Gang, member of the United States National Academy of Engineering, were invited as senior economic consultants for Optics Valley.

Raffarin addressed the event, saying that among 800 foreign-funded companies in Optics Valley, around 100 receive investment from France, adding that he expected to see more such ventures in the future. 

Long Yongtu said that Optics Valley is a national innovation and entrepreneurship hub, and innovation is the foundation of globalization.

As one of the key hi-tech development zones in the country, Optics Valley has made huge achievements over the past 30 years, and the summit is expected to promote its innovation and entrepreneurship, said Song Jingwu.

Attendees also took part in a forum, exchanging views on topic such as development of the free trade zone, international cooperation, and technological innovation in Optics Valley.

Jean-Pierre Raffarin, former prime minister of France, addresses the summit in Optics Valley, Oct 20. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Long Yongtu, former secretary-general of the Boao Forum for Asia, addresses the summit in Optics Valley, Oct 20. [Photo provided to China Daily]