Nanning, September 9 (China News Service) – Lin Hao, Yang Xiaojiao – On September 9, Sun Shuxian, Vice Minister of China’s Ministry of Natural Resources and Director of the National Oceanic Administration, stated in Nanning that China will work with ASEAN countries to explore new paths for blue development, foster emerging industries such as marine biomedicine, electronic information, new energy, seawater desalination, and equipment manufacturing, and build a modern marine industry system empowered by digital intelligence.
On the same day, the China-ASEAN Forum on Blue Economy Cooperation and Development opened in Nanning. Sun Shuxian introduced at the event that for a long time, adhering to the principle of extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits, China has actively developed blue partnerships with ASEAN countries. Together, they have established cooperation platforms including the China-ASEAN Joint R&D Center for Marine Science and Technology and the Guangxi-ASEAN Marine Industry Development Alliance. Joint efforts have been made in technological research in fields such as sustainable utilization of marine resources, integrated marine management, and marine ecological protection, so as to promote the sharing, transformation and application of scientific research achievements.
Currently, the marine economy has become a new driving force for global economic growth. Sun Shuxian said that China is willing to work with ASEAN to consolidate and strengthen the marine science and technology innovation cooperation platforms, coordinate ecological protection and economic development, smooth the two-way transformation channel between “blue seas and silver beaches” and “lucrative mountains and rivers”, and promote the sustainable development of the marine economy.
Choup Phirith, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Environment of Cambodia, expressed his agreement. He said that China is a trustworthy cooperative partner for Cambodia in developing the blue economy. In recent years, the two sides have jointly built marine observation stations and carried out coastal zone protection survey projects. While developing tourism, they have promoted biodiversity conservation, bringing benefits to the people of both countries.
Ukrit Sataphuming, Deputy Director-General of the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources under Thailand’s Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, noted that Thailand is currently cooperating with China to advance research on marine biodiversity conservation. He hopes that the two sides will share experiences in the protection of rare species and conduct technical exchanges in fields such as marine fishery resources conservation and coastal zone restoration.
Hu Fan, Vice Governor of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, said that Guangxi will create application demonstration scenarios in areas such as marine observation and port logistics empowered by artificial intelligence. It will focus on fields like marine fishery and mangrove carbon sinks, and promote the transformation of a number of “small but high-quality” project achievements with ASEAN.
It is learned that this forum is co-hosted by the Oceanic Administration of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, the Fourth Institute of Oceanography of the Ministry of Natural Resources of China, and the China-ASEAN Joint R&D Center for Marine Science and Technology. With the theme of “Innovation, Green, Intelligence: A New Blue Future for China-ASEAN”, it aims to strengthen cooperation among countries in developing the marine economy, safeguarding marine health, and enhancing marine science and technology capabilities by building an institutionalized platform for exchange and cooperation.
During the event, the 13th Meeting of the Management Committee of the China-Thailand Joint Laboratory for Climate and Marine Ecosystems, the 14th China-Thailand Symposium on Marine Science and Technology Cooperation, the China-ASEAN Symposium on Marine Drugs and Biological Products, the Symposium on “Artificial Intelligence + Offshore Clean Energy”, and the China-ASEAN International Training Course on Marine New Energy were also held. These events jointly discussed hot topics in fields such as marine ecology, industry, and science and technology. (End)
Editor-in-Charge: Zhang Lingqi
