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City honors Mitsubishi China chief
From:Shanghai Daily  |  2020-09-29 08:29

YASUTERUHIRAI, chairman of Mitsubishi Corporation China, was honored as an Honorary Citizen of Shanghai yesterday for his contributions to the city.

Shanghai Mayor GongZhengpresented him with a medal and certificate.

The award is the highest in terms of acknowledgement of foreigners in Shanghai.

Gong said the honorary citizenship represented the inclusiveness of Shanghai and was also in recognition ofexpats’contributions to promoting the city’s development.

Since 1997, 45expatshave become honorary citizens of Shanghai.

Hirai turned 59 yesterday and said the honor was the best birthday gift he had received.

“I feel honored to have received the Magnolia Silver Award in 2014, the Magnolia Gold Award in 2017, and the honorary citizenship today,” he said. “I always feel that there is more for me to do for Shanghai and the highest award in Shanghai has given me a sense of mission to do better in my job and make more contributions to the city.”

Hirai began promoting Mitsubishi’s business in China soon after he joined the company in 1984. Under his leadership, Mitsubishi Corp China moved its head office from Beijing to Shanghai and developed into the largest of all Mitsubishi branches in the world.

He has also contributed his knowledge in promoting green and strategic emerging industries in Shanghai and sponsored activities for autistic children.

After the COVID-19 outbreak, Mitsubishi donated 200,000 masks to China and he returned to Shanghai to lead the resumption of the company’s work, including pushing forward the establishment of a chemical research and development center in the ShanghaiHangzhouBay Development Zone inFengxianDistrict.

Hiraisaid he loves the city, its life and culture.

“Shanghai is an ideal place for foreign businesses with explicit policies and high government work efficiency,” he said.

“Meanwhile, the government is willing to communicate with foreign businesses like Mitsubishi Corporation to find out what needs to be improved and solve problems efficiently, which is one of the biggest advantages of Shanghai in terms of business environment.”

He said Shanghai’s cultural development also impressed him.

“There are so many galleries and museums in Shanghai and they have frequent exchanges and cooperation with their counterparts around the world to bring cultural enjoyment to Shanghai residents including me,” he said. “I will definitely continue to work and live in the city in the following years and wish to make a lifelong contribution to the city.”

Magnolia Gold Awards

The city also presented Magnolia Gold Awards to 10expatsfrom Spain, Japan, Canada, South Korea, Brazil, the US, the UK and France. They come from fields including trade, finance, services, science, health care and culture.

Since 1992, 342 foreigners have received the Magnolia Gold Award.

Gong presented the medals and certificates, andXuKunlin, vice mayor of Shanghai, thanked them for their contributions.

“All the recipients of the award represent the best of the best in their own industry. One thing in common is that many have been living and working in Shanghai for a lot of years and become good friends of the city,” he said.

“The outbreak of COVID-19 has caused a lot of disruption to everyone’s life. I would like to thank the award winners and the foreign community for working with us to contain the pandemic.”

He said Shanghai was continuing its reform and opening-up and was going all out to become a global center for finance, trade, shipping and scientific innovation.

Francisco JavierGimenoAlcala, the Spanish CEO of Asia-Pacific of French multinational Saint-GobainGroup, delivered a speech on behalf of the recipients.

“All of us feel extremely honored by the great recognition that the city of Shanghai has so generously awarded us,” he said.

“You have welcomed us with open arms, by creating excellent business and life conditions. After so many years working and living here, each of us has developed a very vital and sentimental relationship. Definitely, we all feelShanghainese.”

Gimenowas honored for promoting economic development and innovation in the city, as well as exchanges between China and France.

Gimeno, his wife and two children have lived in Shanghai for 10 years.

“Since our arrival in the fall of 2010, we have witnessed the amazing acceleration of the transformation of the city. In the years after our arrival, Shanghai has become a global benchmark in terms of social vitality, business dynamism and collective and individual creativity,” he said.

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