The 10th "Belt and Road" Summit opens in Hong Kong, focusing on various opportunities in trade, investment, innovation and technology, and green development.

On September 10th, the 10th Belt and Road Summit opened in Hong Kong, lasting for two days and attracting over 6,000 participants, including over 90 government and business representatives speaking, and over 100 delegations participating. The forum aimed to discuss development opportunities in various areas such as trade, investment, innovation and technology, and green development. Approximately 50 government and business cooperation memorandums were signed, setting a new record and highlighting Hong Kong's role as a functional platform for the Belt and Road Initiative. The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) government has been hosting the forum since 2016, which has become a flagship project for Hong Kong's participation in and support of the Belt and Road Initiative. It has also become the largest and most important commercial and investment platform to promote cooperation between Hong Kong, Mainland China, and overseas companies on Belt and Road projects. The 10th forum, themed "Cooperation for Change, Building the Future Together," introduced new elements such as focusing on key markets, projects, and sustainable development platforms to create more cooperation opportunities for businesses, local professional services in Hong Kong, and civil exchanges. During his opening speech, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong SAR, John Lee Ka-chiu, stated that the Belt and Road Summit promotes government, business, and cultural exchanges and cooperation for mutual change. Over the past decade, over 45,000 people from more than 120 countries and regions have participated, showcasing over 2,800 projects. Through collaboration and connectivity, a common vision is built, practicing the core value of the Belt and Road Initiative. John Lee Ka-chiu said, "The Hong Kong SAR government is expanding Hong Kong's international trade network at full speed. In the past three years, I have visited 12 Belt and Road countries leading high-level trade delegations from the SAR to witness the signing of over 160 cooperation memorandums, agreements, and achievements with relevant economies. Hong Kong has signed free trade agreements with 14 Belt and Road countries, investment agreements with around 20 Belt and Road economies, and comprehensive agreements to avoid double taxation with 37 Belt and Road tax jurisdictions. Last year, the total commodity trade between Hong Kong and Belt and Road countries exceeded $276 billion, an increase of about 80% since 2013, three times the growth rate of Hong Kong's total external commodity trade during the same period." John Lee Ka-chiu also outlined Hong Kong's advantages and developments in economic and trade investment, competitiveness, talent, connectivity, green and sustainable development, and legal systems. He pointed out that Hong Kong is an ideal hub for the Belt and Road Initiative, as the city possesses both Chinese and global advantages. As an international city, Hong Kong is a preferred platform for cooperation, connecting people, trade, commerce, education, culture, and values within Asia and the world. With the dual advantages of being a "super connector" and "super value-added", Hong Kong will inject continuous innovative energy and strategic value into capital projects, further advancing high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative. Paul Chan Mo-po, the Financial Secretary of Hong Kong, delivered a welcome speech at a special themed luncheon titled "Advancing Practical Commerce Cooperation, Promoting Regional Partnerships." He shared how Hong Kong was seizing two important global development trends - green and sustainable development, as well as digital innovation - to actively promote more partnerships and contribute to regional connectivity. Regarding green and sustainable development, Paul Chan Mo-po mentioned the SAR government's efforts to develop Hong Kong into an international green technology and financial center, leveraging its hub status to drive global green transformation. In green finance, the government is committed to promoting the development of transformative finance, and through innovative financial products such as catastrophe bonds and infrastructure debt securitization, meeting the diverse needs of emerging economies. Hong Kong is also accelerating the development of green technology as a hub, contributing innovative technologies to the regional decarbonization process. In terms of digital innovation, Paul Chan Mo-po stated that for economies along the Belt and Road and global southern countries, Hong Kong and mainland China are offering diverse digital solutions covering financial technology, smart healthcare, cloud computing, 6G communication, and digital city management. Hong Kong has identified artificial intelligence as one of its key development strategies, striving to build an open, collaborative, and inclusive AI ecosystem. Simultaneously, Hong Kong is actively embracing blockchain as a core technology in financial innovation, fully utilizing its potential to enhance cross-border transaction efficiency. Senior Counsel of the Hong Kong Department of Justice, Rimsky Yuen, delivered a welcoming speech at a themed sub-forum titled "Win-Win with Law: Creating the Silk Road Vision." He emphasized the indispensable role of international legal services in the signing and implementation of Belt and Road projects as they involve cross-border legal matters. Yuen highlighted Hong Kong's international civil and commercial law practices and expertise under the common law system, recognized by the international business community, with various advantages, including a large pool of legal professionals with extensive experience in international commercial law, reliable and high-quality legal and dispute resolution services, and close legal cooperation with Belt and Road countries. Greg So, Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development of Hong Kong, hosted a policy dialogue segment titled "Mastering Change, Creating the Future" with other government representatives to explore ways to promote economic cooperation amidst uncertain geopolitical environments through innovation such as the Green Economy and digitalization. He pointed out that the Belt and Road Initiative provides a convenient platform for international cooperation to promote trade and economic integration. So emphasized infrastructure development as one of the main advantages of the Belt and Road Initiative, which helps expand market access, eliminate trade barriers, promote investment, create jobs, and improve living standards. In addition, the Hong Kong SAR government and relevant agencies showcased nine cooperation memorandums with overseas governments and organizations at the forum, covering various sectors such as the Department of Justice, Hong Kong Financial Development Bureau, Independent Commission Against Corruption, Hong Kong Customs, Hong Kong Observatory, Hong Kong Trade Development Council, Invest Hong Kong, Securities and Futures Commission, and countries including Pakistan, Indonesia, Hungary, Qatar, Cambodia, the Sultanate of Oman, and the United Arab Emirates, to promote bilateral cooperation and exchanges. The forum also facilitated approximately 36 other cooperation memorandums covering multiple areas. These memorandums, along with new projects and transactions implemented before the forum, amount to a total of around US$1 billion. The Hong Kong SAR government is actively expanding its overseas markets, especially in the promising ASEAN and Middle Eastern markets. A segment was added to the forum focusing on key Belt and Road projects, introducing tender projects for city development in Thailand and Saudi Arabia. The Belt and Road Office, in collaboration with the Hong Kong Construction Industry Council and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, shared information to facilitate Hong Kong companies and professional services to pursue business opportunities in ASEAN and the Middle East projects.