2nd China-Indian Ocean Region Forum on Blue Economy Cooperation kicks off in Kunming, China

BEIJING, Dec 9(APP): The second China-Indian Ocean Region Forum on Blue Economy Cooperation kicked off in Kunming, the capital of Southwest China’s Yunnan province. Xiao Jie, Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of China’s National People’s Congress, attended the opening ceremony and delivered a keynote speech.

Chairman Luo Zhaohui of the China International Development Cooperation Agency (CIDCA) and Governor Wang Yubo of Yunnan province delivered speeches respectively. They pointed out that it is our common responsibility to boost blue economy cooperation, an integral part of global cooperation. Since President Xi Jinping put forward the concept of building a community with a shared future for mankind, the Belt and Road Initiative and three major global initiatives, namely, the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, and the Global Civilization Initiative, China has been doing its utmost to promote the implementation of these important concepts and initiatives, as well as the United Nations (UN) 2030 Sustainable Development Goals and the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030) initiative, which has achieved important results.

China will continue to invest more resources in global development cooperation and work with countries in the region to advance blue economy cooperation. Yunnan will continue to leverage its geographical advantages as a gateway for China’s opening up to South Asia, Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean region, to provide an important platform for sustainable development in the region. More than 350 representatives from over 30 countries, international organizations, think tanks, foundations, and enterprises attended the event, virtually and in person. Among them were Mohamed Saeed, Minister of Economic Development and Trade of Maldives, Mohammed Warsama Dirieh, Minister of Trade and Tourism of Djibouti, Sihle Zikalala, Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure of South Africa, and Moctar Ould Dada Hamdane, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Environment, Tourism and Handcrafts of the Comoros. Representatives of the four parallel sessions’ organizers, namely, Yunnan University of Finance and Economics, Ministry of Natural Resources, Ministry of Ecology and Environment, and Ocean University of China, presented the forum results respectively.

Themed “Boosting Sustainable Blue Economy to Build Together a Maritime Community with a Shared Future,” the forum was co-organized by the CIDCA and the People’s Government of Yunnan Province. It features four parallel sessions on China-Indian Ocean Region Blue Economy Cooperation, Blue Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Cooperation, Biodiversity Conservation and Marine Eco-Environmental Protection, and Sustainable Development of the Island Countries in the Indian Ocean.