THE Mariano Marcos State University and Ilocos Norte Governor Matthew Joseph Manotoc welcomed key officials of Shandong Province in China for a signing of a Joint Work Plan between the two provinces.

The Chinese delegation was led by Shandong Vice Governor Deng Yunfeng. With him were SAAS President Li Xiangdong and DU President Zhao Changlin.

MMSU said the JWP aims to define a framework of cooperation and collaboration in the fields of economy, education, trade, investment, agriculture, tourism, science and technology and culture.

Among the activities under the collaboration are business and trade exchanges to help businesses from both provinces expand and find new opportunities.

The parties are also considering the possibility of establishing a Philippine Youth Exchange Base and strengthened personnel exchanges and cooperation.

“The JWP also directs MMSU-SAAS and MMSU-DU academic and research engagements, including the launch of the MMSU-SAAS Maize Joint Research and Development Center and MMSU-DU International Joint Laboratory for Smart Agriculture,” the school said.