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Greater Manchester has launched a new strategy to set out how the city-region will engage with countries and cities around the world on trade, tourism and international cooperation.
The International Strategy will provide a framework for how Greater Manchester will work with the national government, investors and other UK city-regions to boost trade links and create jobs and build on the city’s strong reputation in sectors such as technology, healthcare, manufacturing and low-carbon innovation.
The strategy sets out five goals for international collaboration:
- Trade – enabling businesses to compete on the world stage
- Investment – attracting investment for the creation of job opportunities
- Research and Innovation – fostering cross-border partnerships and promoting strengths in digital, tech, health innovation, and low-carbon technologies
- The Visitor Economy – promoting the city-region’s cultural and sporting heritage around the world
- International Students – welcoming international students to the Greater Manchester’s universities
Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham said:
“Greater Manchester has always been a global city-region, at the heart of trade and diplomatic relations in the North. If the experience of the last couple of years has taught us anything, it’s that the challenges we face – from addressing the climate crisis, to tackling a pandemic, to responding to conflict – are global in scale, and require us to work in partnership to meet them.
“The International Strategy defines Greater Manchester’s place in this changing world. It sets out how our global reputation, our partnerships with cities and regions around the world, and our unique devolution model can make this a place that attracts people from around the world to visit, study, and do business. It also acts as a blueprint for ensuring this global outlook benefits our city-region, not just by supporting innovation and creating good jobs, but by opening up new opportunities for connection and collaboration across borders.”
Cllr Elise Wilson, GMCA Lead for the Economy, said:
“The International Strategy is how Greater Manchester will connect with – and lead in – a changing world. Nowhere is better placed than Greater Manchester, at the heart of a resurgent North, to rise to the world’s challenges and contribute to Global Britain.
“Working as a collective to compete on the world stage is fundamental to growth across our city-region, to the creation of jobs, and to who we are: outward-looking, innovative, ambitious, and international.”
The new strategy was launched at an event in Manchester on 24th March, and replaces previous iterations published in 2017 and 2020.
The International Strategy is available in full on the GMCA website here.