China’s overseas security industry is expected to undergo explosive growth as the country’s enterprises have set up overseas representative offices in over 160 countries.

Chinese enterprises face a range of risks in foreign countries, including accidents, public health issues, natural disasters, and social instability.

An employee of a China-invested enterprise in South Asia used to be escorted by six security guards when he went out, according to an experienced security guard, emphasizing the importance of protecting Chinese employees in foreign countries.

“Chinese enterprises in foreign countries have to dock with countries participating in the ‘Belt and Road’ initiative in four areas, including strategy, plan, platform, and project, and the issue of safety has to be discussed in each area,” said Mou Xiongbing, an official from the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).

People who work in the security industry can be generally categorized into three types: safety management departments of related national departments and enterprises; security consultants; and security companies, according to Jin Guiling, founder of the Oversea Safety Management and Insurance Service Alliance of the China International Contractors Association.

Chinese enterprises have spent tens of billions of dollars on investment in safety. The company PetroChina, for example, invests 3-5 percent of its total investment volume in safety, said a person in charge of the safety work of the company’s international division.

Nowadays, high technology is applied to safety rescues. Some companies are using an app that can send an alarm to support staff at their headquarters in 10 seconds after an emergency happens.

However, industry insiders also warn about the lack of a designated governmental organization to manage and streamline the industry to cut response time. In this respect, relevant departments under the NDRC have started to work on the issue, said Mou.

Meanwhile, the quality of Chinese security staff needs to be improved, as some of them can’t negotiate with their foreign counterparts because they can’t speak English or the local languages.

The safety issue of Chinese companies should be tackled under the joint efforts of Chinese security companies, local governments and organizations, Mou said. In the future, China’s overseas security industry is expected to undergo explosive growth as more domestic security, consulting, insurance, and rescue companies set up offices overseas, Jin said.