Shandong is fully engaged in utilizing its cultural resources to take advantage of the opportunities afforded by the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and in pushing fine Qilu traditional culture across the world.

In 2017, there were 67 cultural exchange groups in Shandong consisting of 892 people that visited foreign countries and China's Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan, 41 of which, including 606 people, journeyed to countries along the route of the BRI. Conversely, a total of 427 foreign cultural exchange groups with 6,013 members visited Shandong.

This year, the Shandong provincial department of culture will further promote cultural exchanges under the BRI to build a province with economic and cultural strengths. By the end of April this year, Shandong had sent 19 groups with 210 people to carry out cultural exchanges with the BRI countries.

It will coordinate the efforts of financial, editorial, human resources and social security, and foreign affairs departments to promote cultural exchanges with countries involved in the BRI and strengthen cooperation with African countries, guiding Jinan, capital of Shandong province, in promoting cultural exchanges with South Africa, Lesotho and Namibia.

At the same time, Shandong will participate in the "year of the China-Russia local cooperation and exchange" program and conduct cultural exchanges with the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia.

As an important platform for Qilu culture going global, a number of major cultural exchange activities will be carried out this year by Shandong, such as "2018 New Zealand-China (Shandong) Culture Year" and "Shandong Culture Week" to be held in South Australia.

Additionally, a range of cultural exchange activities have already been conducted, such as the "Spring Festival Celebration", the Year of China (Shandong) Culture, the fourth "Cross-Pacific China Art Festival" and the Shandong Cultural Week, strengthening the cultural cooperation between the province and its foreign partner counties and states.

Shandong, a major cultural province, sees the important role of youth grassroots and communities in the cultural exchanges with Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. It will promote stable ties between its cultural organizations and related cultural institutions and grass-roots communities in Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, carrying out literary and artistic creations.

The province will also implement the "foreign cultural exchange program bank project", which will collect on a yearly basis the ideological theory, literary and artistic works, performance repertoire, and calligraphy and painting works that represent the highest artistic level of the province, creating cultural brands in various fields.

It is hoped in turn this will enhance Qilu culture's overseas influence.

Shandong has made its contribution in pushing Chinese culture to go global and improving the nation's cultural soft power.