A group of information officers and reporters from Latin America visited Qingdao, Shandong province, on Saturday, to explore the coastal city’s rapid economic and cultural development.

Sixty-six media representatives from 11 Spanish-speaking countries, including Bolivia, Columbia, Panama and Uruguay, are attending a five-day tour of Shandong, the birthplace of philosopher Confucius.

Qingdao was the second stop of the tour after the provincial capital, Jinan.

Members of the group said they were impressed by the large passive house — a construction built to strict voluntary energy efficiency standards — at the Sino-German Ecopark in the city’s West Coast New Area.

The park, the only strategic cooperation park in China supported by the Chinese and German governments, aims to build the largest passive housing complex in China over the next five years, covering an area of 1.6 square kilometers.

Cristobal Antonio Chen Solis, from Panama, said, “Cooperation between two large world economies has achieved remarkable results, and set a good example for environmental protection and energy-saving technology.”

He added that he hopes to bring the environmentally friendly concept back to his country and promote the building of a similar ecopark.

Panama, which established diplomatic relations with China last month, has 23 delegates on the tour — the largest number among the 11 countries.

Solis said he was impressed by China’s rapid development and its strong innovation capabilities.

The media group also visited Qingdao Port and several cultural sites during a three-day tour of the city.

Alfredo Vaneskahian Keuchkerian, a broadcast journalist from Uruguay, said he feels that China’s fast-paced development has made the country a global leader.

He said he was impressed by Qingdao’s infrastructure and port facilities.

“The strong economic development and manpower will be two main highlights of my news report when I return,” he added.