Why not Guangzhou? In the mid-1980s, the Chinese Embassy in France began to take an interest in what were then called "twinning arrangements" and what we now call "decentralized cooperation". While such ties between French cities or regions and their foreign counterparts were common, there were at the time virtually none with China. The City of Lyon therefore considered establishing a partnership with a city in a country that was still so little known, whose new policy of opening up was just beginning.
This was hardly surprising: since the 17th century, Lyon has been one of the European cities with the oldest and most continuous links with China. "Why not establish a partnership with Beijing?" municipal officials wondered. They were told that, as a capital city, Beijing could only be twinned with another capital. I then suggested the name of Guangzhou, known to the French as Canton. I first visited it in 1978, the year China began issuing tourist visas. It was a dilapidated city, only just emerging from troubled times, but with a warm welcome and remarkable cuisine. Above all, it had a rich history of openness to foreign trade and was destined to become a laboratory for the Four Modernizations launched by Deng Xiaoping … a former student in France.
The entrance to the Franco-Chinese Institute of Lyon (1921-1946)
The cooperation agreement between Lyon and Guangzhou was signed in 1988, in the presence of Guangzhou's Mayor, Mr. Zhu Senlin; a few years later, it was supplemented by another agreement linking Lyon's 7th arrondissement with Liwan District. After some initial trial and error—we first had to get to know one another—the first exchanges got under way. They were initially economic (the French would soon call Guangdong "the world's factory") and later extended to higher education and research, culture (particularly between our libraries), as well as a wide range of fields, from sport and youth affairs to healthcare.
Appointed an honorary citizen of Guangzhou in 1996—a gesture of friendship that I greatly appreciated, but which also entailed responsibilities—I had the privilege of accompanying every mayor of Lyon on their visits to the capital of Guangdong Province: Michel Noir, Raymond Barre, Gérard Collomb and Georges Képénékian. A former prime minister and a great connoisseur of China, Raymond Barre, like his successor Gérard Collomb, founder of the Lyon Metropolitan Authority in 2015, showed a deep attachment to our ties with Canton and worked to develop them.
Alain Labat speaks at the Franco-Chinese Institute of Lyon
On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between France and China, Lyon welcomed President Xi Jinping in March 2014; an exhibition tracing the history of the Franco-Chinese Institute of Lyon had been prepared for him. Building on the Work-Study Movement in France, the Institute hosted nearly five hundred young Chinese between the two world wars who were seeking "Western knowledge": it represents one of the finest chapters in the intellectual history shared by our two countries.
It also has a connection with the origins of the Communist Party of China. Following this state visit, Gérard Collomb wished for the exhibition to be transformed into a museum, enriched with a section devoted to our historical ties with China. He also wanted a new Franco-Chinese Institute to be revived, bringing together all the stakeholders in our region and serving as an institution dedicated to developing cooperation with China, particularly with Guangzhou and Guangdong, as well as with Shanghai Municipality, a partner of our Auvergne Rhône-Alpes region for forty years. This September 2026, the New Franco-Chinese Institute is celebrating its tenth anniversary; in front of its buildings, visitors can admire a monumental group of statues, donated by the Guangzhou Municipal Government, depicting the founders of the former Institute, Li Shizeng and Cai Yuanpei, surrounded by students who became famous after returning to China. Among them is Yao Bicheng, who founded Guangzhou Medical University in 1958. In Lyon's largest park, one can also see a kapok tree, a testament to the enduring and long-standing friendship between the two partner cities.
Group of statues, donated by the Guangzhou Municipal Government
For my part, I have had the privilege of being a close witness for nearly half a century to the extraordinary development of Guangdong and its capital, observing its economy, society, science and urban development … all of which I try to make better known to my fellow citizens. In today's world, filled with the fury of wars and other geopolitical, commercial, technological and other confrontations, these bonds of friendship and cooperation between two cities located at opposite ends of the land and maritime Silk Roads appear more precious than ever.
The author is Alain Labat, President of Federation of French-Chinese Associations
Photos provided to South by the author
