“ASEAN-China Belt and Road Business Forum: the First E-Commerce Cooperation Dialogue”Held Welcoming Activity

On 15 May 2018, the welcoming activity of “ASEAN-China Belt and Road Business Forum: the First E-Commerce Cooperation Dialogue”was held in Jakarta, Indonesia. Attended the event were around 200 participants including H.E. Mme. Yang Xiuping, Secretary-General of ASEAN-China Centre (ACC), H.E. Mr. Huang Xilian, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to ASEAN，H.E. Mr. Tan Hung Seng, Permanent Representative of Singapore Mission to ASEAN，government officials, leaders of business associations, entrepreneurs, scholars and journalists from both China and ASEAN countries.

H.E. Mme. Yang Xiuping, Secretary-General of ACC delivered remarks on behalf of the hosts to warmly welcome all participants. She said that there was a special significance for the Forum to be held in Indonesia. In October 2013, Chinese President Xi Jingping paid a state visit to Indonesia, and put forward the important initiative of building a closer ASEAN-China community with a shared future, and jointly building the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road. Recently, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang paid an official visit to Indonesia, during which he visited the ASEAN Secretariat. The successful visit has given a strong boost to practical cooperation between China and Indonesia, and further consolidated the sound momentum of ASEAN-China relations. This forum is a concrete step to implement the consensus reached by the leaders of ASEAN and China, and to pursue the Belt and Road Initiative. It is also an important event to echo the ASEAN-China Year of Innovation. She expected that all participants would contribute their wisdom and insights at the Forum on ways to strengthen e-commerce cooperation and promote the Belt and Road Initiative.

H.E. Ambassador Huang Xilian said in his remarks that ASEAN is an important direction of the Belt and Road Initiative. E-commerce is the most dynamic component of global economy, as well as a major field of the Belt and Road Initiative cooperation. Both China and ASEAN are hot spots and engines of e-commerce and have huge potential for future cooperation. He hoped the forum would establish a platform for China and ASEAN to exchange views and learn from each other, jointly tap cooperation potential, pursue win-win results, and create new highlights for China-ASEAN cooperation.

The Forum was co-hosted by the ASEAN-China Center and Chinese Mission to ASEAN, and was organized by ASEAN Finance, Guangdong High-Tech Industry Chamber, and Shenzhen Dorlly Industrial Park. It focused on the current development and future prospects of e-commerce in ASEAN and China and provided a platform for ASEAN and Chinese entrepreneurs to match with each other, and help promote innovative cooperation between the two sides in the field of trade and investment.