Interview: Boao Forum for Asia to kickstart key discussions on post-pandemic recovery: Malaysian expert

KUALA LUMPUR, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The 2022 Annual Conference of the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) will kick-start key discussions on post-pandemic recovery and boost efforts by countries that are emerging from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, said a renowned Malaysian expert in a recent interview with Xinhua.

Drawing attention to this year's theme "The World in COVID-19 &Beyond: Working Together for Global Development and Shared Future", Oh Ei Sun, principal adviser for Malaysia's Pacific Research Center, said the theme accurately captured the sentiments of many countries including Malaysia, which are just recovering and adapting to the post-pandemic world.

He also said the BFA comes at a particularly advantageous time as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) has come into force, giving participating economies the opportunity to tap into China's vast market to accelerate their own economic recovery and growth.

"The Boao Forum for Asia traditionally has been a forum for both policymakers as well as business communities, as well as some of those think tanks, intellectuals ... to come together, to come up with suggestions and proposals so that each of these participating countries would be able to better coordinate their economic policies," he said.

Oh said this is especially important for countries among the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, some of which are on a low-tide of economic development but are now keenly aware of the benefits of rapid digitalization, having drawn important lessons from the pandemic.

He also noted that this renewed interest would see Chinese e-commerce platforms play a greater role in regional trade and Chinese companies have an invaluable opportunity to better understand Southeast Asian markets, consumers and to localize their products to tap into these consumers.

"Most of us during the lockdown period in our respective countries during the pandemic would have made use of these electronic commerce platforms. There are various major Chinese electronic platforms, which are performing and also trying to establish themselves in Southeast Asia," he said.

"And most of them have met with quite a resounding success but I think when they work together with some of their local counterparts, that would add in local ingredients and local contents to their offerings. And very often, that would make sure that your business takes off even further," he added.

Oh, who will deliver a speech at BFA 2022, said that the interaction between RCEP and the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) would be a hot topic, as many RCEP members are also BRI partners who are longing for a faster post-pandemic recovery.

Oh believed that RCEP would bring a new momentum to the development of BRI as both complemented each other by promoting the free flow of capital, facilitating trade, improving communication and transportation, and increasing people-to-people exchanges.

"A large number of Southeast Asian countries benefited from the initial projects of the Belt and Road Initiative. And now that RCEP has entered into force, we would look forward to learning more (about) how the BRI and RCEP would interact with one another and hopefully that could bring new momentum to how the Belt and Road Initiative continues to connect China with the rest of Southeast Asia," he said.

The Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) will hold its annual conference from April 20 to 22 in Boao, a coastal town in southern China's island province of Hainan. Attendees will gather and discuss the post-pandemic development agenda for Asia and the world.