The transition towards high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative will open up new spaces for Belt and Road construction, a foreign business leader suggested at the Belt and Road CEO Conference held in Beijing on April 25, 2019.  

"The quality is the main added value that we can provide in each sector, so the development should focus on quality rather than quantity, and it's something that has been implemented by some countries along the Belt and Road, which would definitely help China to develop in a sustainable way," said Massimo Bagnasco, vice president of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China. 

For the first time, a conference organized specifically for the business community was held during the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation. The CEO conference is aimed at providing a platform for business people to seek potential opportunities in broader areas. Some 850 business leaders from 88 countries and regions, including representatives from 90 global Fortune 500 companies, gathered in Beijing to discuss cooperation opportunities.   

"The China-proposed BRI has sketched out a 'freehand brushwork' over the past few years and is working on a 'meticulous painting,' which poses new challenges and requirements for China's centrally-administered SOEs and private companies," said Xiao Yaqing, head of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council (SASAC), in his speech at the opening ceremony of the conference. 

Xiao also said that to achieve high-quality development of the BRI, China's centrally-administered SOEs should shoulder major tasks by upholding the principles of openness, inclusiveness, and transparency on infrastructure building along the Belt and Road. 

Today, the BRI has completed the planning stage and is taking steps toward sustainable development. The SASAC says centrally-administered SOEs are managing 3,120 projects along the Belt and Road, covering energy, transportation, and industrial sectors. Fruitful results were achieved in the past six years, including creating new local jobs, cutting infrastructure construction costs, and shifting toward a low carbon future. 

Noting the future trade corporation under BRI, Davide Cucino, chairman of the China-Italy Chamber of Commerce, believes that there are a lot of knowledge and experiences that both sides can share, but the most important thing is to carry out sustainable investing. He expected future collaborations under the BRI to respect the environment, the will of the people, economic rules, and bidding rules. 

The CEO conference also features a deal signing ceremony of new projects and a B2B matchmaking session. Close to 1,000 one-on-one symposiums were held between 570 companies from 75 countries and regions. A total of 56 deals were signed on the site, and another 217 cooperation agreements were reached between Chinese companies and their counterparts along the Belt and Road.