Chairman of Schneider Electric Jean-Pascal Tricoire speaks at the Business Plenary – Fostering Business Collaboration along the Belt and Road through Hong Kong during the Belt and Road Summit 2023 at Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai, Sep 13, 2023. (ANDY CHONG / CHINA DAILY)

HONG KONG – Global business leaders on Wednesday called for business collaboration along the Belt and Road Initiative to seek new breakthroughs in sustainable development, digitalization and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

“Everything we do inside the Belt and Road and the projects are going to stay with us for many years and for the decades to come,” Jean-Pascal Tricoire, chairman of the French energy giant Schneider Electric, told the main forum at the Belt and Road Summit in Hong Kong.

“Of course, all of us have to be very competitive economically, but also we have to respond to the impact of what we are designing, building, and operating in the future,” he said.

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The eighth edition of the Belt and Road Summit, jointly organized by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government and the Hong Kong Trade and Development Council, kicked off on Wednesday and concludes today.

Today by using digitalization, we are able to cut energy spending by a factor of 30 percent to 50 percent in most applications.

Jean-Pascal Tricoire, Chairman, Schneider Electric

Tricoire said the world has realized that it has reached a certain number of limits in terms of climate and social acceptability, adding that it’s important to go beyond the economics to respond to the effect of everything done in all aspects of the environment.

Describing digitalization as a big change, he said that it’s a breakthrough in cutting carbon emissions and saving energy.

“Today by using digitalization, we are able to cut energy spending by a factor of 30 percent to 50 percent in most applications,” he said.

Wang Haihuai, director and general manager of China Communications Construction Co Ltd, said the Greater Bay Area boasts a range of comparative advantages in driving the Belt and Road Initiative, given the region’s strong economic and industrial base.

With a population of 87 million, the 11-city cluster’s economic output topped 13 trillion yuan ($1.79 trillion) in 2022 — 2.8 trillion yuan more than that in 2017 — data from Guangdong province’s Development and Reform Commission show.

Director and General Manager of China Communications Construction Company Ltd Wang Haihuai speaks at the Business Plenary – Fostering Business Collaboration along the Belt and Road through Hong Kong during the Belt and Road Summit 2023 at Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in WanChai on Sep 13, 2023. (ANDY CHONG / CHINA DAILY)

Innovation industries are also emerging in the Greater Bay Area, Wang said, citing Shenzhen-based telecommunication giant Huawei and gaming giant Tencent as examples.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong, as a part of the city cluster, can fully leverage its status as an international city and global shipping and commercial center under the “one country, two systems” principle, Wang said.

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“I think some of these advantages will still play an important and prominent role in the process of high-quality development of the upgraded version of the Belt and Road,” he told the summit.

Antony Leung Kam-chung, chairman of the Hong Kong-based conglomerate Nan Fung Group, speaks at the Business Plenary – Fostering Business Collaboration along the Belt and Road through Hong Kong during the Belt and Road Summit 2023 at Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai, Sep 13, 2023. (ANDY CHONG / CHINA DAILY)

Echoing Wang’s remark, Antony Leung Kam-chung, chairman of the Hong Kong-based conglomerate Nan Fung Group, said different cities within the Greater Bay Area have functions that complement each other.

Leung, a former Hong Kong financial secretary, said he remains optimistic about the SAR’s role in fostering business collaboration along the Belt and Road.

“That is because Hong Kong has the backing of our motherland, China, which is the second-largest economy in the world, and our unique position in connecting with the rest of the world,” Leung said.

Founder and Chairman of Sunway Group Jeffrey Cheah Fook Ling speaks at the Business Plenary – Fostering Business Collaboration along the Belt and Road through Hong Kong during the Belt and Road Summit 2023 at Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai, Sep 13, 2023. (ANDY CHONG / CHINA DAILY)

Jeffrey Cheah AO, founder and chairman of Sunway Group, hailed the Belt and Road Initiative and urged more collaboration across national borders.

“I must confess that I’m no expert on the Belt and Road Initiative. And I must commend President Xi Jinping on his wisdom and enlightened vision on these global initiatives as an entrepreneur,” he said.

He added that entrepreneurs focus on outcomes and are committed to making a positive impact on the world, saying the collaborated efforts are what the world needs to solve today’s global challenges.

Contact the writer at evanliu@chinadailyhk.com