China Radio International (CRI) has opened a production studio in Zhengzhou, the capital of Henan province in north-central China.

Wang Gennian, the director-general of China Radio International took part in Tuesday’s launch ceremony along with Zhao Jingchun from the Henan Radio and Television Bureau and Wang Zhe from the Communist Party of China (CPC) Zhengzhou Committee.

The city is planning to utilise CRI’s global broadcasts to launch a marketing project to boost its image.

According to CRI’s website, Wang told those attending the launch that it was important that China’s international broadcaster and local governments continued to cooperate.

CRI is planning through its various language channels and platforms to rejuvenate the city’s image, said Wang.

Zhengzhou has a population of around 9 million and was one of 13 emerging megacities in China named by the Economist Intelligence Unit in 2012.