Guangzhou is the birthplace of the Maritime Silk Road and a trading port that has been opened to the world. The 13 businesses in the Ming and Qing Dynasties created glories of Guangzhou. When the reform and opening up policy was executed, Guangzhou has taken a lead in establishing three kinds of foreign-funded enterprises, and setting up the White Swan Hotel and other five-star joint venture hotels. From the 13 businesses to Canton Fair, opening up has always been the strongest voice of the times, encouraging businesspersons of Guangdong to expand business in Southeast Asia and the rest of the world and attracting numerous investors to build factories, buildings and headquarters in Guangzhou.

 

While China’s economy comes to the new normal, Guangzhou enjoys great advantages and can make great achievement following implementation of the strategy on the Silk Road Economic Belt and the Maritime Silk Road, approval of China (Guangdong) Pilot Free Trade Zone, and upgrade of China-ASEAN Free Trade Zone. “We should frame a new round high-level opening up system and structure and improve the city’s international competitiveness with an opening and inclusive attitude and active opening strategy,” said Ren Xuefeng, secretary of Guangzhou Municipal Committee of the CPC.

 

Guangzhou will look for a high-level opening-up path from a global vision. What’s a high-level opening-up path? It means a vision not being confined to a single city, but to look for a benchmark in the global city system and the driving force in the process of global development element allocation and international industrial division.

 

The high-level opening up requires a more active attitude. Guangzhou has always been one of the cities favored by international investors and the first choice of many multinationals in their business plan in South China. While “introducing” global investment, we should also go global. “The going global strategy not only helps transfer the excessive high-quality production capacity, but also allows Chinese enterprises to experience tests of the overseas markets and facilitates upgrade of China’s manufacturing.” At just-concluded Davos Forum, GAIG, Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holding Limited and Yuexiu Group made a debut and enlarged the “Circle of Friends” of Guangzhou at Davos.

 

The high-level opening up should be multifaceted. Today opening-up is no longer the workshop processing with materials supplied by customers, but a scale systematic measure that requires the use of new platforms and is characterized by new highlights. On the one hand, Guangzhou needs to identify characteristics of Nansha section of Guangdong Pilot Free Trade Zone, Sino-Singapore (Guangzhou) Knowledge City (SSGKC), Zengcheng Development Zone and deepen opening up. For example, Nansha section of Guangdong Pilot Free Trade Zone will deepen integration with Hong Kong and Macao and SSGKC focus on introduction of intellectual property and commercialization of scientific achievements. On the other hand, Guangzhou will develop more highlights while planning for establishing the 21^st Century Maritime Silk Road Economic Belt Port Alliance in the shipping, logistics, trading and finance sectors. The stronger these industries grow in the global market, the stronger the capability of Guangzhou will have in the national and global resource allocation.

 

The high-level opening up requires deepening reform. Only with seamless connection between the business environment and international norms can Guangzhou goes further at the path of opening up. Guangzhou has been rated the first in the urban public service capability and evaluation of governance by law and other fields, and should further create a transparent and efficient administrative environment, improve the social credit system and the market supervision system. Take Nansha section of Guangdong Pilot Free Trade Zone as an example. It has profound significance for the system innovation of the free trade zone to accelerate the investment and trade facilitation with the “special development zone speed” and then form replicable experiences with Guangzhou characteristics. And the establishment of Guangzhou Intellectual Property Court will undoubtedly drive development of the intellectual property protection system of Guangzhou to ascend to the advanced level of the world.

 

Opening up is the best advantages of Guangzhou and the special skills of the city as well. From shore to shore it seems wide at high tide, before fair wind a single sail is lifting. As long as Guangzhou deepens opening up with a global vision and the pioneering spirit in opening up and reform, its opening up will scale the new heights.

 

Source: Guangzhou Daily, January 30, 2015