On 10 May 2018, SCO Secretary-General Rashid Alimov had a meeting with Shenzhen Mayor Chen Rugui during the Green Life, Beautiful Home conference.
In January 2018, members of the SCO Ambassadors Club held their visiting session in Shenzhen and met with members of the city administration. They spoke about prospects for expanding economic ties between the SCO countries and the mega-city. Participants at the latest talks focused on greater cooperation between the SCO Secretariat and the city administration in the context of strengthening relations between administrative-territorial entities of the SCO member countries and launching regular dialogue between the regional authorities of the participating states.
The sides also discussed cooperation between the SCO Secretariat, the Shenzhen city administration and the local business community during preparations for the upcoming Beijing 2019 EXPO where the SCO will have its own pavilion.
Shenzhen is a sub-provincial city and a major industrial and financial centre in the Pearl River delta in Guangdong Province of the People's Republic of China. According to the UN, Shenzhen is among the top five cities in the world in terms of the highest birth rates.