(Focus on Boao) Boao Forum for Asia: The "Golden Signboard" of Hainan's Opening to the Outside World and Free Trade Port Construction

　　China News Service, Haikou, April 13th. Title: Boao Forum for Asia: "Golden Signboard" for Hainan's Opening to the Outside World and Free Trade Port Construction

　　China News Agency reporter Zhang Qianyi and Wang Xinli

　　"In the past 20 years, the Boao Forum for Asia has provided an important platform and channel for Hainan to comprehensively deepen reform and opening up, promote foreign exchanges and cooperation, expand the'international circle of friends', and increase international visibility, and become a part of Hainan's promotion of opening up and building a free trade port. "Golden signboard"." Wang Sheng, director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Hainan Provincial Party Committee, said in an interview with a reporter from China News Agency a few days ago.

　　The 2021 Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference will be held in Boao, Hainan from April 18th to 21st.

This year's annual meeting is the world's first large-scale international conference with offline meetings as its main focus.

　　Chi Fulin, director of the China (Hainan) Reform and Development Research Institute, said that the Boao Forum for Asia was originally held in Hainan because Hainan is China's largest special economic zone and has regional and geographic advantages facing the Pan-South China Sea.

Since its establishment in 2001, the Boao Forum for Asia has developed into an important forum with global influence based in Asia and facing the world.

　　Wang Sheng said that while Hainan used the forum platform to serve the country’s overall diplomacy, it took advantage of the forum’s home diplomatic platform to expand its opening to the outside world. It has successively planned the China-ASEAN Provincial Mayor’s Dialogue, the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road Island Economic Sub-forum, and the South China Sea. Theme sub-forums and other activities have built a new bridge for exchanges and cooperation with countries and regions along the “Belt and Road”.

This year, there will be a new sub-forum on the development trend of global free trade ports.

From the second half of this year, the Boao Forum for Asia Global Tourism Forum will be organized as a mechanism.

　　The five consecutive "China-ASEAN Provincial Mayors Dialogues" have filled the gaps in the China-ASEAN local government cooperation mechanism.

In the five years since the Dialogue was held, Hainan and ASEAN local governments have established more than 10 friendly relations between provinces and cities, and signed a number of pragmatic economic and trade cooperation.

At present, ASEAN has become Hainan's largest trading partner.

The 2021 Dialogue will launch online and offline discussions with the theme of "Watching and Helping Together to Promote Development: Local Government Cooperation in the Post-epidemic Era".

　　Chi Fulin believes that Hainan has an unshirkable responsibility in promoting cooperation between the Forum and the Pan-South China Sea.

　　"The establishment of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road Island Economic Forum" is a typical case of Hainan Province using the resources of the forum to promote Hainan’s participation in the construction of the Maritime Silk Road." Wang Sheng said that since the sub-forum was first held in 2016, accumulative invitations have been invited Representatives from the political, business, and academic circles from 13 island countries and regions on four continents and relevant international organizations attended the conference. Discussions were held on issues such as new opportunities for island regions to participate in the “Belt and Road”, marine economy, and sustainable development of island tourism. The “Global Islands” was published for four consecutive years. "Development Annual Report" to fill the gaps in island economic research and provide international public products for global island cooperation.

　　According to Wang Sheng, this year’s island economic sub-forum will focus on the common mission of island development with the theme of "promoting the construction of a marine community with a shared future," and discuss the issue of building a global island research center with representatives from all over the world. Annual Report on Global Island Development (2020).

　　In the opinion of Zhong Yechang, chairman of the Hainan Provincial Federation of Social Sciences, the guests from various countries who participated in the forum experienced the development and changes of Hainan firsthand.

Through the forum, the people of Hainan have improved their vision and opened up their minds and concepts.

　　The "international style" collided with the "pastoral style". Hainan innovated the foreign investment promotion model, and carried out foreign affairs exchanges and investment promotion activities through Boao's "Rural Revitalization Foreign Affairs Direct Train".

During the 2019 Forum Annual Conference, companies such as Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard will be attracted to set up R&D centers in Qiong to empower tourism, artificial intelligence, medical health, marine and other industries.

　　In recent years, Hainan has used the forum platform to promote industrial cooperation.

As the "second movement of the Boao Forum for Asia", the Boao Lecheng International Medical Tourism Pioneer Zone has taken shape since its establishment in 2013.

Liu Zhefeng, deputy director of the Administration of the Pilot Zone, said that the value of imported clinically needed drugs and medical devices in the pilot zone in 2020 is 170 million yuan, an increase of nearly 6 times compared with the same period last year; in the context of the epidemic, the number of medical tourists received has reached 84,000, compared with the previous year. Increased by 12% in 2019.

　　"After serving the Boao Forum for Asia for 20 years, Hainan has created an institutional arrangement and a service guarantee environment that is in line with internationally accepted rules. We are delighted to see that the forum has trained Hainan to follow international conventions, have a global perspective, and High-quality foreign affairs and service guarantee human resources team with vision." Wang Sheng said.

　　As the host of the "Global Free Trade Port Development Trend Sub-forum", Chi Fulin hopes that Hainan can learn advanced international experience and help the construction of a free trade port.

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