The two cities Shenzhen and Edinburgh signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in June 2013 which aims to provide reciprocal support for incubation spaces in each cities. Under the agreement of the two cities, Edinburgh-Shenzhen Creative Exchange (ESCE) is the first creative incubator operated in the business model of Shenzhen and foreign city cooperation, government leading, enterprise investment, market operation and professional team management. It is a creative exchange program implemented in both Shenzhen and Edinburgh on the basis of cooperation between municipal governments of Shenzhen and The City Council of Edinburgh after the two cities have officially become Cooperative Cities. ESCE (Shenzhen Center) is the incubator in Shenzhen to encourage cultural, creative and tech sector small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) from Edinburgh to expand in China and raise their international influence. This cooperation has also been supported by the Scottish Government and it delivers on a number of objectives set out in their China Plan and Economic Strategy through enhanced cultural collaboration and increased exchanges between both nations.