With crisp autumn air and the sweet fragrance of ripening fruits, the inaugural meeting of the Jizhou District Tourism Association was solemnly held on the morning of October 20 at the Evergrande Hotel at the foot of Panshan Mountain.

He Yinong, Secretary of the Jizhou District Party Committee; Zhang Jianyu, District Mayor; Liu Guiming, Second-Level Inspector of the Tianjin Municipal Culture and Tourism Bureau; Qin Chuan, Chairman of the Jizhou District CPPCC; Su Jian, Member of the District Party Committee Standing Committee and Head of the Publicity Department; and Xu Xiangguang, Deputy District Mayor, attended the conference. Guests in attendance included Liu Yaozhong, Vice Chairman of the China Tourist Attractions Association and President of the Beijing Tourist Attractions Association; Zhou Liyuan, Deputy Secretary-General of the China Tourist Attractions Association; and Zhao Fusheng, Vice President of the Tianjin Tourism Association and President of the Tianjin Travel Agency Integrity Promotion Association. Approximately 140 people participated in the event, including principal officials from the District Culture and Tourism Bureau, the Civil Affairs Bureau, and tourism‑focused towns; the inaugural president, vice presidents, and supervisors of the Jizhou District Tourism Association; heads of member units and representatives of those units; as well as media reporters.

The conference outlined the establishment of the Jizhou District Tourism Association, presented certificates to the president, vice presidents, secretary-general, and supervisors, and issued the association’s initiative. Rong Zucheng, president of the Jizhou District Tourism Association, delivered a statement, while leaders from the Beijing and Tianjin tourism associations and officials from the Municipal Culture and Tourism Bureau offered addresses. He Yinan, Secretary of the Jizhou District Party Committee, spoke on behalf of the Jizhou District Party Committee and Government and, together with Comrade Liu Guiming of the Tianjin Municipal Culture and Tourism Bureau, unveiled the plaque marking the official launch of the Jizhou District Tourism Association.

Secretary He Yinong emphasized that the establishment of the Jizhou Tourism Association is both timely and in line with prevailing trends, and expressed the hope that the association will recognize the heavy responsibilities it bears, fully fulfill its role, and live up to expectations. First, we must elevate our political awareness. We will unswervingly heed the Party’s call and follow its leadership, earnestly implement the instructions and requirements put forward by Secretary Min’er during his inspection visit to Ji, work in concert with the Party committee and the government, proactively fulfill our social responsibilities, and jointly foster a healthy, orderly, and efficient environment for sustainable development. Second, we must leverage our roles in coordination and oversight. It is hoped that the association will firmly embrace a holistic, coordinated approach, strengthen its sense of responsibility and professional capabilities, and respect the principles governing the development of the tourism industry and market dynamics, thereby providing expert guidance and strategic advice for tourism project planning and implementation. All member organizations should abandon short-sighted practices, adopt long-term goals, refrain from indiscriminately pursuing every opportunity, and avoid haphazard project launches, so as to contribute through concrete actions to the region’s tourism sector’s quality‑driven and sustainable development. Third, we must leverage our role in standardizing and guiding. We will uphold the principle of giving equal weight to regulatory oversight and development, rigorously implementing education and training on food safety, traffic safety, facility safety, and fire‑ and electricity‑safety for industry professionals. We will strengthen industry self‑regulation, guide orderly growth, and resolutely prevent practices such as price undercutting, disorderly competition, and unhealthy internal rivalry. Furthermore, we will conduct a precise analysis of the composition of tourists visiting Jizhou, tap into Beijing’s abundant tourism market, and launch targeted promotional campaigns and event planning, leveraging culture, arts, and sports to invigorate rural areas. Fourth, we must leverage cooperation and service. Leveraging the association’s strengths in expertise, information, talent, and institutional mechanisms, we will carefully summarize and distill the best practices of leading regions, strengthen resource pooling, information sharing, and mutual learning from experience, and help member organizations stay abreast of market trends, seize business opportunities, and address practical challenges.

The establishment of the Jizhou District Tourism Association marks a new stage in the development of the district’s cultural and tourism industry. It will help strengthen and refine the sector’s self-regulatory framework, unite and bring together businesses across the entire cultural and tourism value chain—both upstream and downstream—and pool resources to drive collective progress. By serving its members, the industry, and the government, the association aims to foster win‑win cooperation and deliver benefits to all stakeholders. Meanwhile, the association has welcomed an initial cohort of 62 members, comprising 49 institutional members and 13 individual members. These include 23 tourist attractions, 5 township‑level tourism associations, 1 new‑media association, 4 upscale hotels, 13 travel agencies, 3 cultural‑creative enterprises, as well as individual representatives from farm‑stay guesthouses in nine tourism‑focused towns and townships, such as Sunggezhuang Manchu Township and Maxinqiao Town.

Going forward, under the leadership of the District Party Committee and the District Government, and guided by the relevant industry authorities, the Jizhou District Tourism Association will earnestly implement the instructions and requirements put forth by Secretary Min’er during his inspection visit to Jizhou. The association will expedite the refinement of its organizational structure, establish a Party organization, and begin setting up specialized committees for scenic areas, farmhouses (homestays), and travel agencies and hotels. Under the association’s overall coordination, it will adopt a categorized management approach, with each committee assuming its respective responsibilities, and carry out targeted initiatives across all fronts. At the same time, the association will broadly recruit members to strengthen its ranks, formulate industry standards and regulations to enhance self‑discipline, and engage in coordinated marketing efforts to expand its influence. Through training and exchanges, it will draw on the strengths of others while addressing its own shortcomings, thereby comprehensively elevating the professional competence of practitioners. By fully leveraging its role as a bridge and link between the government and member entities, the association will dedicate itself to serving the development of the cultural and tourism industries and boosting the cultural‑tourism economy. With a vision of using culture to enrich tourism and art to illuminate rural areas, it will make due contributions to transforming Jizhou District’s tourism sector into a pillar industry. Source: Jizhou District Culture and Tourism Bureau, Tianjin Municipality.