China invites South Asian countries to be part of economic growth

Wang Yi also made suggestions on cooperation in 4 areas: deepening strategic mutual trust, deepening connectivity, deepening economic and trade cooperation, and deepening people-to-people exchanges

China has urged South Asian countries to get on board its "express train" and receive a share of the dividends of its economic growth.

China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi said this on Wednesday while addressing the opening ceremony of the 7th China-South Asia Expo in Kunming, the capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province.

Wang, Director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs noted that this year marks the 10th anniversary of the expo and also the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the neighbourhood diplomacy featuring amity, sincerity, mutual benefit and inclusiveness - both proposed by President Xi Jinping.

In the past decade, China and South Asian countries have consolidated solidarity and cooperation, advanced Belt and Road cooperation, deepened friendly exchanges and created a new chapter of China-South Asia friendship for the new era, Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the ruling Communist Party of China Central Committee, was quoted as saying by China's foreign ministry spokesperson on Thursday.

"China welcomes South Asian countries to get on board the express train of China's development and share in the dividends of China's development," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin quoted Wang Yi as saying.

The gross domestic product (GDP) of China, the world's second-largest economy, reached 59.3 trillion yuan (about USD 8.3 trillion) in the first half of 2023, up 5.5 per cent year on year, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said in June.

"We stand ready to work with South Asian countries to seize historic opportunities, enhance solidarity and coordination, grow new dynamism for development, build a community of development and contribute to the long-term peace, stability and prosperity in the region," Wang Yi said.

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena, Lao Vice President Pany Yathotou, Nepalese Vice President Ram Sahay Prasad Yadav, and Vietnam's Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang attended the opening ceremony of the five-day expo which will conclude on Sunday. It was not known if Indian businesses were participating in the expo.

The event is a "shining name card of exchanges and cooperation between China and South Asian countries and the wider world," Wang Wenbin said.

Wang Yi stressed that China stands ready to work with South Asian countries to strengthen solidarity and coordination, foster new development drivers, build a community of development, and contribute to enduring peace, stability and prosperity in the region.

Wang Yi also made suggestions on cooperation in four areas: deepening strategic mutual trust, deepening connectivity, deepening economic and trade cooperation, and deepening people-to-people exchanges, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

This year's Expo, themed Solidarity and Coordination for Common Development, attracted representatives from 85 countries, regions and international organisations as well as more than 30,000 exhibitors online and offline, covering all South Asian and Southeast Asian countries and members of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).

Since the first China-South Asia Expo was held in 2013, the annual event has played a decisive role in connecting multisector businesses across borders, and dialled-up overall trade momentum between China and South Asia, state-run China Global Television Network reported.

Last year, the aggregate trade volume between China and South Asia bordered nearly USD 200 billion, clocking an annual growth rate average of over 8 per cent, it said. This is a marked uptick from 2013, when total trade stood under USD 100 billion, only to witness impressive growth with the onset of the first-ever China-South Asia Expo a decade ago, the report added.