Fri, September 11, 2009
The World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as the "Summer Davos", opened in Dalian yesterday. The three-day-event, taking "Reviving economic growth" as its 2009 theme, will run in the city until September 12.
Many delegates from around the world have come to this year's event with the same question - "When will the world's economy recover?" According to Xia Deren, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Liaoning Provincial Committee and Party secretary of the Dalian municipal committee, the answer may well be found at the conference.
Xia said: "This year's meeting is of great importance. As many countries' policies and countermeasures against the financial crisis are now beginning to gave an impact, speakers at the conference will focus on the most effective ways to capitalize on this."
This year organizers have invited leading figures from the government, business and the media to the event, as well as a number of global opinion formers. The number of participants is up that attending the first Summer Davos held in Dalian in 2007.
In addition, 67 young scientists are expected to give lectures on the potential impact of technological innovation on the economic recovery.
A Global Competitiveness Report will be published during the meeting, and its finding and recommendations will provide the basis for a lively debate. According to Xia, this will provide several key strategy proposals for the global business community.
As well as its international repercussions, it is hoped that the event will also provide some succor for local businesses, said Xia.
He said: "Dalian's economy has grown by more than 11 percent in the first half of this year, whilst its investment in fixed assets has risen 30 percent in the first eight months. The city's development, despite the crisis, provides a fine example for the rest of the country to follow."
Global economists now agree that the Chinese government has taken highly effective measures to drive domestic recovery, a substantial contribution to rebooting the world's economy. Xia said: "The renewed economic growth in China has played an exemplary role for a global revival."
Green economy
In light of increased concern about the so-called "green economy", this year's event has added the opportunities offered by this sector onto its agenda.
Commenting on this move, Xia said: "The green economy has already long been an important factor in Dalian's own development. This year's participants will see the city's ideal facilities and beautiful environment as evidence that China now pays close attention to environment protection and sustainable growth in developing its economy."
According to Xia, the new energy industry and related sectors have become huge growth areas for the host city. This has included a new focus on energy-efficient automobiles, semiconductor luminous materials, wind power and nuclear power. At the same time, the city government has invested heavily in energy conservation and emission reduction on an annual basis.
Xia said that a new policy document concerning Dalian's development as a green city will be released soon. As part of the plan's proposals, all government-procured buses will be new energy compliant within five years, whilst all of the city's streetlamps are to be converted into more energy-conserving LED lights within three years.
This green initiative will be highly visible to the delegates at this year's Summer Davos. About 60 percent of the cars providing transportation for the event are now designated as either energy-efficient or "new energy" vehicles.
Rising reputation
Xia said hosting the forum has already helped bring new opportunities and benefits to the city: "One of the tangible benefits is that local businesses are better positioned to secure more cooperative projects. A more intangible, yet far-reaching benefit, is that hosting the event considerably boosts the city's international profile."
After the first session in 2007, a number of important foreign funding projects were attracted to Dalian. Several international brands also set up facilities in the city, including British Telecom, Intel, the Citibank and the Standard Chartered Bank.
Due to its growing influence, other high-level international conference organizers have sought to establish cooperative ventures with the city. This has represented a considerable boost to its service sector and led to its rapid growth.
Xia said this year's meeting has coincided with a special period in Dalian's development and represented "the third historic opportunity in the city's history".
The city received its first growth opportunity when it was listed as one of the initial batch of 14 coastal cities designated as part of the country's opening up program back in 1984. The second chance occurred when the central government launched a development strategy aimed at reviving the outmoded industrial bases in northeast China. The city seized on the initiative and was one of the key beneficiaries of its success.
A third historic opportunity has now emerged as the State Council has adopted a new initiative aimed at boosting the economic infrastructure of Liaoning, Dalian's home province. This new scheme will rejuvenate the province's coastal belt, with Dalian playing a pivotal role.
Xia said local authorities will take the opportunity of the Summer Davos to introduce the advantages of the provincial coastal economic belt and promote Dalian's cooperative potential to prospective overseas partners.
Origin
The Summer Davos and its winter counterpart are large-scale international conferences organized by the World Economic Forum (WEF). The "Davos" branding is taken from the name of the small town in Switzerland where the first winter forum was held.
The WEF, founded in 1971, is a non-official international organization, which aims to research and discuss global economic issues and promote international economic cooperation and exchanges. It is best known for its annual meeting in Davos, which has been described as the "Economic United Nations" by the media. Its participants include government, industry and opinion formers from all around the world.
In 2007 China's rapid development and its rising number of growth-oriented enterprises prompted the WEF to launch an annual forum in the country, mainly targeted at rapidly growing companies demonstrating considerable potential. The event gives these "new champions" a platform to meet and talk with more mature businesses - as a result it is frequently referred to as the "Annual Meeting of the New Champions." In September 2007, the first annual meeting of the New Champions was held in Dalian.
The second event in the series was held in Tianjin in September 2008. This year, the third Summer Davos has returned to Dalian.
