Guangxi eyes becoming a Digital Silk Road hub for ASEAN cooperation

South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region will promote the construction of the China-ASEAN information port while positioning itself as a key hub on the Digital Silk Road and bolstering cooperation with ASEAN countries to fuel the high-quality growth of the digital economy, officials said on Friday.

Guangxi witnessed a remarkable 10.8 percent surge of added value in its information transmission, software and IT services sectors during the first three quarters of 2024. These sectors now contribute 11.79 percent to the region's GDP growth, according to Zhao Zhigang, Party secretary of the Guangxi big data development bureau.

The region is championing the inclusion of cross-border data flow within the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area 3.0 negotiations and has made it a national strategic priority. Thanks to the smoother data flow, Guangxi has witnessed a staggering 182 percent year-on-year growth in trade with ASEAN during the first three quarters of 2024. It surpassed the national growth rate by an impressive 12.9 percentage points.

Guangxi has been pursuing collaborative initiatives with ASEAN nations. These include organizing the China-ASEAN E-sports Competition, signing a pivotal memorandum of understanding with Laos to strengthen cooperation in the digital economy and satellite applications and releasing the first China-ASEAN legal model for ASEAN countries.

In July, Guangxi's capital, Nanning, became China's fourth city to set up a full-service international communications import and export bureau, which has significantly enhanced the region's connectivity with ASEAN.

Guangxi has identified two key focus areas to propel high-level digital integration in the future, said Zhao.

Firstly, the region prioritizes the construction of the Nanning International Telecommunications Hub and its surrounding industrial ecosystem, aiming to operate by 2025. Twenty-six cross-border industries will be promoted, with an emphasis on cross-border finance and e-sports. Giants like China Mobile and Huawei are being encouraged to spearhead projects within this framework.

Secondly, Guangxi aims to establish a pilot zone for cross-border data flow. This zone will pioneer solutions for the secure and efficient exchange of high-frequency and non-sensitive data in sectors like logistics and e-commerce, paving the way for the high-quality development of cross-border industries.