People view the award-winning paintings on display at the Second China-ASEAN Youth Painting Exhibition (Guangxi). [Photo by Chang Shanghui for en.gxzf.gov.cn]

The awards ceremony of the Second China-ASEAN Youth Painting Exhibition (Guangxi) took place in Nanning, capital of Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, on Aug 12.

Nearly 400 of the over 500 awarded paintings were displayed in the Second China-ASEAN Youth Painting Exhibition (Guangxi), of which 360 were from ASEAN participants and more than 100 were painted by youth from Guangxi's 16 friendship cities in ASEAN countries.

These paintings fully showcased the enthusiasm of Chinese and ASEAN youth in participating in global exchanges and cooperation.

Shi Donglong, chairman of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, said that Guangxi is connected with ASEAN countries by land and sea and that both sides have a profound history of friendly cooperation. Guangxi and ASEAN have achieved practical outcomes in exchanges and cooperation in areas like economy, trade, technology, education, tourism, culture, as well as in establishing friendship ties, contributing greatly to the establishment of a China-ASEAN comprehensive strategic partnership.

Azlimi Zakaria, consul-general of Malaysia in Nanning, said that China and ASEAN signed a memorandum of understanding on cultural cooperation in 2005, marking the deepened cooperation between the two sides in innovation and art.

The 2022 Youth International Exchange Program also kicked off on the same day, gathering more than 60 domestic and overseas youth representatives, as well as several award winners of the painting exhibition. This year's program includes experiencing intangible cultural heritage items, on-site tours that will showcase the latest development outcomes of Guangxi, and visiting tourist attractions in the region.