Yesterday evening, the eve of the 2016 Business Roundtable of the World Economic Forum, led by Cai Zhaolin, vice mayor of Guangzhou, a number of Chinese and foreign entrepreneurs from emerging industries, high management of multinationals and famous international scholars had a night tour on the Pearl River by boat. The lights showing “Welcome WEF Guests” at the Canton Tower greatly surprised the guests. David Aikman, managing director at World Economic Forum and chief representative officer of World Economic Forum’s Greater China Office, said in admiration, “As a traditional port city, Guangzhou is shining with new glory.”

 

Setting out from the Pazhou Wharf, which is a cradle of the “Maritime Silk Road”, the boats took the guests westward to the Canton Tower, a landmark building of Guangzhou, and then to Shamian Island featuring European style, to feel the different charm of the “modern Guangzhou” and “historical Guangzhou”.

 

David Aikman summarized his impression of Guangzhou with three phases: “vigorous enterprises, inclusive city and international hub”. He said, “What impressed me the most is the great enthusiasm of the enterprises of Guangzhou. More than 50 enterprises based in Guangdong, mainly in Guangzhou, will attend the event. These enterprises have shown great interest in topics concerning the future of business.”

 

This is the third visit of David Aikman to Guangzhou. He sincerely praised the international development of Guangzhou. “The Baiyun International Airport can be on a par with Dubai International Airport in terms of scale. Guangzhou is an inclusive and open city so that it can attract many tourists and investors. Many multinationals would like to make investment and establish branches and research and development centers in Guangzhou. Moreover, Guangzhou has made great efforts to ‘go global’. This allows the traditional port city to shine with new glory at this historical moment.”

 

Concerning the visit to the enterprises yesterday afternoon, David Aikman said that GAC Group represents the digital transformation of manufacturing, while WeChat represents the digital transformation of services and media. “They are not only examples of digital transformation, but also representatives of the innovation and business launch prospects of Guangzhou. I believe that Guangzhou is creating an ecological system to help enterprises make innovation.”

 

The discussions at the Business Roundtable of the World Economic Forum will center on the theme of “digital transformation of strategic industries”. David Aikman said that the theme was a mutual decision made by the World Economic Forum and the government of Guangzhou. Tomorrow, discussions about what changes digitalization will bring to the future of the manufacturing and service industries will be made. Meanwhile, it will be focused on new business modes for auto industry, artificial intelligence and sharing economy.

 

David Aikman also expected to bring the Davos spirit to Guangzhou. “The Davos spirit is a kind of open spirit for people to discuss about and debate. It tries hard to promote the cooperation and communication between the public sectors, private sectors and the civil societies to build a more beautiful world,” he said. “The leaders to attend the forum are forward-looking and open-minded. They participate in the forum with the hope to seek for more benefits and a better life for the citizen groups they represent.”

 

Source: Translated from Invest Guangzhou, November 10, 2016