Ningbo reinforces its role as a Maritime Silk Road hub

Tiantong Temple in Ningbo. [Photo/Ningbo Daily]

Ningbo was recently recognized one of China's influential Maritime Silk Road cities, reflecting its growing influence in trade, culture, and heritage preservation.

The announcement came during the 2025 Maritime Silk Road Urban Cooperation & Development Conference in Wenzhou, where Ningbo joined nine other cities, including Guangzhou and Hangzhou, on the 2025 Influential Maritime Silk Road Cities (China) List. The ranking evaluates cities on global connectivity, trade, cultural exchange, international reputation, and urban capacity.

With its prime location linking the East China Sea to inland waterways, Ningbo has long served as a critical hub for maritime trade.

Over the past two decades, the city has developed a comprehensive system for safeguarding its Maritime Silk Road heritage, combining protection, research, and promotion. Key milestones include the restoration of historic sites such as Tiantong Temple and Baoguo Temple and the establishment of the Ningbo World Cultural Heritage Protection Center. Ningbo helped create the Maritime Silk Road Cities Protection and Heritage Alliance, which now includes 35 member cities. In 2024, the Zhejiang section of the Maritime Silk Road was added to China's updated national World Cultural Heritage tentative list, reinforcing Ningbo's core role.

Ningbo also actively promotes cultural and international exchange. The city has maintained regular dialogues with Japan's Nara and South Korea's Jeju. It also hosts the Maritime Silk Road Port Cooperation Forum and the China-CEEC Expo. Cross-border media projects, including multilingual reporting campaigns, further showcase its global reach.