BRUSSELS, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- The European Union and China held here on Tuesday the 4th high-level meeting on regional policy to enhance bilateral cooperation in the field.

    This annual meeting is taking place within the framework of the EU-China dialogue on regional policy, aiming to agree on a joint working program for 2010 to pursue a mutually beneficial exchange of experience on regional policy.

    "The regional policy dialogue is one of the most successful aspects of cooperation in the overall EU-China policy dialogue, " European Commissioner for Regional Policy Pawe Samecki said in a press release ahead of the meeting.

    "We still have a lot to learn from each other to tackle our respective regional policy challenges," the commissioner added.

    The meeting has mainly focused on the publication of a joint study on EU-China regional policies.

    The study, which should be ready by the end of the year, will compare key aspects of regional policy in China and the EU including the classification of regions, regional governance issues, and the role of regional policy in promoting innovation and competitiveness.

    The meeting also cover a two-week training program for about 30Chinese participants, which would include visits to projects supported by the EU regional policy in different member states.

    The third topic was a joint study with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to review innovation policy in selected Chinese provinces in 2010-2011.

    The Chinese delegation was led by Du Ying, First Vice-Minister from the National Development and Reform Commission.

    The EU and China shared challenges.

    In the EU, despite impressive growth rates in the new member states, one region in four has a GDP per inhabitant equal to or less than 75 percent of the EU average.

    China also faces huge regional disparities between the booming coastal areas and the lagging western part of the country.

    The two sides signed a Memorandum of Understanding on regional policy in 2006.

    The first EU-China regional policy seminar was held in May 2006 in Beijing, the second in Brussels in October 2007 and the third in Chongqing in November 2008. The next high-level meeting will take place in October 2010 in Shanghai.