Chinese high-tech companies boost Belt and Road Initiative

The latest Belt and Road Forum has wrapped up, with the session in Beijing said to have opened up a number of opportunities for more Chinese companies to go global.

AliExpress is an international online retail service of China's E-commerce giant Alibaba.

Its online shopping service reaches more than 220 countries across the globe, covering all the Belt and Road countries.

Turkey is one of the countries that benefit from the platform as local companies sought channels to sell their goods beyond their borders after the country currency plunged.

Wang Mingqiang, general manager of AliExpress, explained how their platform connected the country with buyers across the globe.

"Since the beginning, we have been devoted to enhancing its logistic system, which is an essential part of e-commence business. The capability of its postal system to handle the deliveries has been increased dozens of times with our help. The first Turkey-based online store opened earlier this year. It attracted customers from 58 countries to purchase local goods within the first 24 hours of opening. Turkish products were sold to more than 90 countries in three days, reaching countries as far as Chile and New Zealand," Wang said.

A view of the "Belt and Road" cultural bridge sculpture outside the media center for the Second Belt and Road Forum (BRF) for International Cooperation in Beijing, China, 23 April 2019. [File Photo: IC]

Boosted by Belt and Road Initiative, more Chinese tech firms have stepped up to share their technological achievements and experience with participating countries.

Wang believed Chinese tech companies could make a great contribution to the Belt and Road countries, especially those with less-developed infrastructure.

"Leading Chinese high-tech companies play a very crucial role in facilitating IT development in these countries. We can help them improve infrastructure, elevate the abilities of their IT sectors as well as share some advanced developing experiences to them," Wang said.

Wang added the situation in different Belt and Road countries varied, but said Chinese companies could help address challenges based on existing conditions.

Technologies like big data and cloud computing have been widely applied in some of the Belt and Road countries.

Some cutting-edge technologies like artificial intelligence or 5G is another field that Chinese tech firms are looking to venture into in these countries.

Wang Xiaoyong, vice chairman of China-Africa Business Council, explained how people in Africa could benefit from investments made by Chinese companies specializing in these technologies.

"Firstly, Chinese companies have brought benefits to Africa via e-commerce and logistics, which facilitate the continent's regional and global trade exchanges. In the field of public health, Chinese companies can provide services and technical supports through technologies like big data or AI for remote detection and diagnosis. Chinese companies also help African countries with satellites to improve their communication, media and meteorological monitoring," Wang said.

Wang Xiaoyong said Chinese tech companies were inclined to hire more local people and train more local professionals, as well as integrate into the local environment.

Zhu Feng, executive director of China Center for Collaborative Studies of the South China Sea in Nanjing University, said Chinese tech companies need to reform themselves before going abroad.

"These companies have to bear in mind that the requirements for the operation capacity and mechanisms in China and abroad are different. If the tech companies fail to learn how to adapt to the local environment and to further strength and develop themselves in the global competition, they will not be able to play an effective role in BRI,” Zhu said.

Recent data shows that the export of high-tech products by Chinese enterprises has reached nearly 750 billion US dollars, accounting for 31 percent of China's total export.

This indicates that more Chinese high-tech companies and their products are being accepted by the Belt and Road countries.

Zdravko Pocivalsek, the Minister of Economic Development and Technology of Slovenia, said there was a huge potential for cooperation between Chinese and Slovenian tech companies.

"There are a lot of opportunities to cooperate with China to increase the cooperation between Slovenia and Chinese companies. In this way, we have to cooperate also with high tech Chinese companies. Because we are innovative-oriented country and there are a lot of companies with possibility to cooperate with Alibaba and other Chinese high-tech companies," Pocivalsek said.

Minister Pocivalsek added there were opportunities for Slovenian and Chinese companies to work together in the auto industry and IT sector. He said the influence of Chinese high-tech companies would be a good addition in the Central European country.