(December 18, 2021)

Honourable Mr. Chow Kon Yeow, Chief Minister of Penang,

Mr. Lim Gait Tong, Chairman of China-ASEAN Business Association, Malaysia (CABA Malaysia),

Professor Dr. Choong Chee Keong, Vice President of UTAR,

Mr. Kerk Loong Sing, Vice President of Malaysia-China Chamber of Commerce (MCCC),

Mr. Teh Eng Hin, President of MCCC Penang branch,

Mr. Lai Weng Keong, President of MCCC Perak branch,

Mr. Tan Ah Kiang, President of MCCC Kedah-Perlis branch,

Dear guests, entrepreneurs, and friends,

Good afternoon! I am very glad to attend the Seminar on the Belt and Road Initiative Cooperation and the Synergy of Malaysia-China Development Strategies. First of all, on behalf of the Consulate General of China in Penang, I would like to extend sincere congratulations to the organizers for hosting this seminar. 

In 2013, Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Over the past eight years, this important initiative has evolved from a concept into real actions, and is being translated from a blueprint into reality, and has achieved fruitful results. China is seeking greater complementarity between the connectivity plans and development strategies with countries along the Belt and Road, harmonizing policies, rules, and standards with BRI partners, and deepening effective cooperation with them on infrastructure, industry, trade, scientific and technological innovation, public health, and people-to-people exchange. To date, China has signed more than 200 BRI cooperation documents with 145 countries and 32 international organizations, and has established more than 90 bilateral cooperation mechanisms. A general connectivity framework consisting of six corridors, six connectivity routes, and multiple countries and ports has been put in place. A large number of cooperation projects have been launched. Trade in goods between China and countries and regions along the Belt and Road has reached 10.4 trillion US dollars, and non-financial direct investment in countries and regions along the Belt and Road has exceeded 130 billion US dollars. Those countries and regions have set up about 27,000 enterprises in China, with a cumulative actual investment of 59.9 billion US dollars. The BRI cooperation has both opened up new horizon for China’s development and opening-up, and generated new opportunities for the development of all participating countries. 

Malaysia is a pilot demonstration area of the BRI cooperation. Before the BRI was proposed, China and Malaysia have already begun the cooperation on “Two Countries, Twin Parks”, which now is a model of BRI cooperation. The Malaysian East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) is another important BRI cooperation project for China and Malaysia. As a “land bridge” connecting the east and west coasts of Peninsular Malaysia, it will certainly promote the economic development of the east coast region and the whole country. Bilateral trade and investment between China and Malaysia have shown growth despite the severe impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, demonstrating the resilience and potential of the development of bilateral relations. In 2020, bilateral trade between China and Malaysia reached 131.16 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 5.7 percent. China’s new investment in Malaysia was nearly one billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 22.6 percent. China has been Malaysia’s largest trading partner for 12 consecutive years, and has become the largest source of foreign investments in the manufacturing industry for five consecutive years. In the first half of this year, the bilateral trade volume between China and Malaysia reached 81.79 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 43.9 percent. Direct investment by Chinese enterprises in Malaysia was 800 million US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 76.3 percent. 

Malaysia is an important member of ASEAN, and ASEAN is an important region of the BRI cooperation. Benefited from the BRI cooperation, the scale of China-ASEAN trade and investment cooperation continues to expand. In 2020, China and ASEAN have made a historical breakthrough in becoming each other’s largest trading partners. Their cumulative two-way investment has exceeded the 200 billion US dollars threshold, and continues to maintain a strong growth momentum. Both sides are continuously advancing the industrial complementarity and industrial transfer in an echelon pattern, enhancing the construction of free trade zones, and upgrading the stage and level of economic and trade cooperation. China and ASEAN work together to enhance the strategic synergies between the BRI and the Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity 2025 to promote the building of the ASEAN community and improve the connectivity between China and ASEAN countries. There are many landmark projects generated by synergies between the BRI and the development strategies of ASEAN countries apart from China-Malaysia cooperation projects. China-Laos Railway is already in official operation. The Thai-Chinese High-Speed Railway, Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway and the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor are making steady progress. 

Dear guests and friends, 

Both China and Malaysia have entered a new development stage, and both countries attach great importance to high-quality development and international cooperation. China and Malaysia enjoy broad prospects in the synergy of their respective development strategies and BRI cooperation. 

With regard to China, this year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC). China has realized the first centenary goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, and is marching toward the second centenary goal of building China into a great modern socialist country in all respects. Not long ago, the 19th Central Committee of the CPC convened its sixth plenary session, and has adopted the Resolution of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on the Major Achievements and Historical Experience of the Party over the Past Century. The overall approach for development has been further clarified that we need to ground our efforts in this new stage of development, apply the new development philosophy, foster a new pattern of development, promote high-quality development, comprehensive deepen reform and opening-up, promote common prosperity for all, and build up our country’s strength in science and technology. China will implement a more proactive opening-up strategy, adhere to the mutual promotion of domestic and international liberalization, better integrate the attraction of foreign investment into China and the investment by domestic enterprises overseas, advance trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, accelerate the formation of a high standard global network of free trade areas, build pilot free trade zones (FTZs) and Hainan Free Trade Port, advance opening-up with institutional guarantees in the areas of management, standards, rules, and norms, pursue opening-up in a larger scope, to wider area, and at deeper levels, and build an open economy which is mutual beneficial, diversified, balanced, secure and efficient. China continues to uphold the principles of extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits, so as to advance the high-quality development of the BRI cooperation, promote a large number of cooperation projects related to the economic development and improvement of people’s livelihood in countries along the Belt and Road. The BRI should be built into a road of peace, prosperity, opening-up, green, innovation, and connecting different civilizations, and become a widely welcomed international public good and platform for international cooperation in the world. 

Recently, President Xi Jinping delivered important remarks at the third symposium on Belt and Road development and pointed out that upholding the cooperation principle of extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits, emphasizing hard connectivity of infrastructure as the important direction, soft connectivity of rules and standards as the important support, and people-to-people connectivity between the people of all the partner countries as the important foundation. We should enhance the connectivity, and develop four-in-one connectivity network linking land, sea, air, and the cyberspace, deepen cooperation in both traditional and new types of infrastructure programs, and lift the level of alignment in rules and standards. China will promote unimpeded trade flows, expand trade with neighboring countries, encourage imports of more high-quality products, improve the level of trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, and promote balanced and win-win development of trade. More should be done to enhance cooperation in the digital industry, develop “Silk Road E-Commerce”, and formulate a pattern for digital cooperation. We should build high-quality landmark projects. The projects to improve people’s livelihood could be an effective means to increase people’s sense of fulfillment in countries along the Belt and Road, and to form more grounded and united cooperation results. These strategies and policy measures will expand new areas and provide opportunities for BRI cooperation and the synergy of development strategies between China and Malaysia. 

With regard to Malaysia, as a newly industrialized country in Asia, the country’s economic and social development and industrial structure are in a period of transformation and upgrading. Development plans such as the Shared Prosperity Vision 2030 (SPV2030), the Twelfth Malaysia Plan (12MP), the Malaysia Digital Economy Blueprint (MyDIGITAL), etc. have been formulated. The main objectives of the SPV2030 are addressing wealth and income disparities, creating a new development model, and building Malaysia to be united and prosperous so it can be the new center of Asia, and focuses on the development of key areas with greater potential such as digital economy, the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR 4.0), smart industry, advanced and modern services, etc. The 12MP focuses on economic recovery and development in the post-pandemic era to reap higher productivity gains, expand export markets, balance development of different industries, and strengthen industrial development in the fields of electrical and electronics (E&E), global services (GS), creative, halal, smart farming, new energy, etc. There is an urgent need to expand foreign cooperation. The 12MP also proposes relevant measures to strengthen the construction of digital infrastructures, and help small and medium enterprises (SMEs) realize digital transformation, so as to create a favorable environment for the development of digital economy. In order to speed up digital transformation, the MyDIGITAL and the National e-Commerce Strategic Roadmap (NESR) have also been proposed, striving to build Malaysia to be a technologically advanced economy by 2030. In addition, the foreign policy framework launched by the Malaysian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on December 7 emphasized that it will give priority to international cooperation to revitalize the economy and develop digital economy. 

The economies and industries of China and Malaysia are mutually complementary, and the two countries have better prospects for creating synergy the development strategies. China has the most complete economic and industrial system in the world, and is already at the world’s leading level in certain areas. For example, the digital economy in China has penetrated into all areas of people’s lives and markets, and is regarded as a new engine for high-quality development. Strengthening cooperation in the digital industry will bring greater space for China-Malaysia’s synergy of development strategies and BRI cooperation. Malaysia has advantages in the fields of information and communications, semiconductors, etc., and China has a large market demand in these fields. The cooperation of the technologies and industries in these fields between the two sides is very promising. BRI cooperation can provide a cooperation platform for Malaysia to better implement its national development plans. 

Both China and Malaysia are important members of Asia-Pacific regional cooperation, and both countries can also promote BRI cooperation through participating in regional cooperation, and realize the synergy of development strategies between the two countries. This year marks the 30th anniversary of China-ASEAN Dialogue Relations. The relationship between the two sides has been elevated to a comprehensive strategic partnership, ushering in new development opportunities. In his speech at the Special Summit to Commemorate the 30th Anniversary of China-ASEAN Dialogue Relations, President Xi Jinping reiterated that China will unswervingly take ASEAN as a high priority in its neighborhood diplomacy. China stands ready to work with ASEAN to share opportunities and promote shared prosperity. We will implement in earnest our comprehensive strategic partnership, and make new strides toward building a closer China-ASEAN community with a shared future. It is suggested that both parties should fully harness the role of the RCEP, begin work toward a new round of upgrade of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area at an early date, and enhance the level of trade and investment liberalization and facilitation. We need to expand cooperation in new areas like digital and green economy and build joint demonstration zones for economic innovative development. China has a vast domestic market that will always be open to ASEAN countries. China is ready to import more quality products from ASEAN countries. China will continue to develop demonstration zones for high-quality Belt and Road international industrial capacity cooperation, and welcome ASEAN countries’ participation in the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor. We propose a China-ASEAN Digital Governance Dialogue to deepen innovative application of digital technology. The RCEP will enter into force and take effect on January 1 next year, with schedules of commitments covering market access in goods, services, investment, etc. The cooperation framework and platforms of China-ASEAN cooperation, RCEP, etc. enable China and Malaysia to better integrate bilateral BRI cooperation into the regional economy, and further realize the synergy of development strategies of the two countries.  

China and Malaysia are geographically close and culturally connected. Malaysia has favorable factors such as history, culture, and location in the BRI cooperation. Malaysia is featured with both multiculturalism and cultural integration. It perfectly inherits Chinese culture, and enjoys close people-to-people bonds with China. Malaysia is also closely connected with the Muslim world, and can play the unique role as a bridge for economic and trade cooperation and cultural exchanges. Malaysia is located in the center of Southeast Asia, holding a strategic point at the Strait of Malacca, and has obvious geographical advantages.  

Malaysia has long attached importance to developing relations with China, and actively carried out cooperation with China. Although there is a change of government, Malaysia’s support for the BRI has never changed. In his speech at the opening ceremony of the 130th China Import and Export Fair (Canton Fair), Malaysian Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said that Malaysia’s aspiration will resonate well with China, the BRI will open up more frontiers of connectivity, and will create new possibilities for growth and development in all regions of the world. On December 4, the First China-Malaysia High Level Committee Meeting was held. Both sides agreed to build a more solid China-Malaysia comprehensive strategic partnership in the post-pandemic era, and reached a broad consensus on key cooperation priorities for deepening the Belt and Road cooperation and accelerating economic recovery. 

It is expected that in the post-COVID-19 era, China and Malaysia will continue to join hands to create more highlights of cooperation, promote the BRI cooperation to grow in depth and substance, and realize the complementarity of the advantages of the two countries and the synergy of development strategies to bring greater benefits to the two peoples. It is also expected that more visionary people from all walks of life in the consular district and the entire country will seize the opportunities, actively participate in the BRI cooperation, and make new contributions to deepening China-Malaysia cooperation and advancing bilateral relations. 

Lastly, I wish this seminar a complete success! The year 2022 is coming soon. I wish all guests and friends Happy New Year, good heath, success in your work, and all the best! 

Thank you!