David Whitwam, chairman of the New Zealand Chamber of Commerce in China’s Hong Kong SAR, poses for a photo during an exclusive interview with China Daily on June 29, 2023, in Yan'an, Shaanxi province. (LESLEY LIU / CHINA DAILY)

The head of New Zealand Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong SAR foresees vast opportunities for his country and China in innovation and engineering, after paying a weeklong visit to China’s inland provinces, Henan and Shaanxi, with other high-level foreign diplomats and business leaders.  

David Whitwam, chairman of the chamber, made the remarks during an interview with China Daily on Thursday, a day before concluding his trip. 

The business leader is one of the 70 Hong Kong-based foreign diplomats and business leaders to make up a high-level delegation to visit China’s central and western provinces of Henan and Shaanxi. The weeklong trip concluded on Friday.

Whitwam said Hong Kong SAR is also renowned for its accounting services and intellectual property protection, all of which can help New Zealand companies undertake their marketing in the Chinese mainland

The delegation, led by Liu Guangyuan, head of the Commissioner’s Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, aims at helping foreign business communities in the SAR discover opportunities under the Belt and Road Initiative, a global collaboration initiative proposed by China in 2013. The two inland provinces of Henan and Shaanxi are pivotal regions of the initiative.

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Noting both countries’ emphasis on the importance of innovation, Whitwam said that China's large market represents significant potential for New Zealand's universities and research institutions to commercialize their innovation outcomes.

He also cited the importance of engineering. "In New Zealand, we have quite a developed earthquake building code to protect buildings from damage during earthquakes," he said. "There is probably a market for that technology in China because China has a lot of earthquakes as well," he added. 

New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has also been on an official visit to China from Sunday to Friday. "We are enthusiastic about the possibility of expanding the range of trade that we have with China. Not just the volume, but also the breadth of the trading relationship," the prime minister said on Wednesday.

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Whitwam believes Hong Kong SAR can play a critical role in helping more New Zealand companies tap into the Chinese mainland's market. 

“Any company in New Zealand wanting to come to this part of the world can use Hong Kong as the stepping stone," he said.

He explained that the SAR's common law legal system is similar to that of New Zealand’s, making it easy for companies from his country to seek legal advice and assistance. The city is also renowned for its accounting services and intellectual property protection, all of which can help New Zealand companies undertake their marketing in the mainland, said Whitwam.

In fact, New Zealand already frequently trades with inland parts of China, Whitwam noted.

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Whitwam said he noticed the butter served at meals during the delegation's visit was made by Anchor, a New Zealand dairy company, and he believes New Zealand's wines have also entered the local market.

Meanwhile, various products from the two inland provinces — such as buses from Yutong, a Henan-based vehicle manufacturer which the delegation visited on Sunday, and Ice Peak soda drink, a brand from Xi'an — are also available in New Zealand, he added.