The Dream Factory of China

A 364-PAGE English-language report on the Belt and Road Initiative was released yesterday by the Qianhai Institute for Innovative Research (QHR), aiming to discuss the concept thoroughly and make it easier for the general public, especially for English readers, to understand.

Andrew Elek, lead author of the report and a visiting research fellow of the Crawford School of Economics and Government at the Australian National University (ANU), discussed the initiative from various perspectives, such as the scope of cooperation, the foundation of realizing ideal results, issues of implementation, potential risks, financing, constructing infrastructure, and the connection and communication within the Belt and Road region. He also gave suggestions to cope with challenges.

Elek was invited by QHR to lead the research and he spent nine months in China visiting different places and people to learn more about the initiative.

“When talking about the initiative, I think there are three ‘don’ts’ that can be used to describe foreign readers. They don’t understand the term, they don’t believe that it can be done by 60 countries all together, and they don’t conduct research on it,” said Chen Kwan-yiu, president of QHR. “Thus, we invited Elek to preside over the project. We need to have some views from outside of China and he is the most qualified person because he knows a lot about regional cooperation — he once played an important role in preparing the establishment of APEC.”

“The initiative is very hard to understand. Although there are many publications about it, it’s still very difficult for other language speakers to comprehend,” Elek said. “I think it is the right time to propose the initiative, and the key for 60 countries to build close coordination is sharing leadership by having good policy communication. It takes a long time to implement the proposal and we need to have patience and good will.

“The initiative also provides opportunities for Qianhai, which can be the pioneer place to offer financial and technology support,” Elek added.

A closed-door seminar on the report and related issues was also held following the report’s release, attracting experts from Shenzhen and Hong Kong to share ideas on the interactive development of policy, finance, region, culture and education.

The report “The Future of the Belt and Road: Long-term Strategic Issues” can now be found at http://www.qiir.org/.