Review and outlook on 40 years of cooperation between the FES and SIFA in Sichuan

At the end of October 2025, the Friedrich Ebert Foundation celebrated 40 years of cooperation between the FES and SIFA in Sichuan Province with a visit by a delegation of experts and a reception with partners and alumni.

Following an agreement between Willy Brandt and Deng Xiaoping in 1985, the FES opened its first China office in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan Province, 40 years ago and has been cooperating with SIFA ever since. After the FES office in Chengdu had to close in the mid-1990s, the work of the FES in Sichuan is now being continued by the FES office in Beijing.

To mark four decades of successful cooperation between the FES and SIFA, a delegation led by FES board member Rolf Mützenich traveled to Chengdu to discuss past and future cooperation with political decision-makers from Sichuan Province, SIFA leadership, and FES partners and alumni in Sichuan.