Connectivity Opportunities Aplenty in Guangxi

In recent years， China and ASEAN have made substantial achievements in their ever-deepening cooperation in politics， economics and social development. The question of how to precisely evaluate the progress made in China-ASEAN collaboration and how to practically promote cooperation between specific regions of China and ASEAN member states are of great significance to all stakeholders.

To quantify the level of connectivity between China and other countries along the Belt and Road， the Peking University Institute of Ocean Research， the State Council Development Research Center and the State Information Center of China have jointly developed the Five-Connection Index， part of an evaluation system that demonstrates progress made in policy communication， infrastructure connectivity， trade links， capital flows and understanding among peoples.

According to the Five-Connection Index released in 2015， connectivity between China and ASEAN countries within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative presents the following characteristics: China has built close connections with Indonesia and Malaysia in all five ways specified in the Index. Its trade links with Brunei， Vietnam and the Philippines remain strong， while infrastructure connectivity with Laos， Singapore and Thailand is comparatively weak. China has enjoyed long-established political trust with Cambodia， and sees great potential in economic and trade cooperation with Myanmar.

Some provinces and autonomous regions in China， such as Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region， have had frequent exchanges with ASEAN countries. There are two specific ideas regarding how these regions can play a leading role in China-ASEAN collaboration.

On the one hand， integrated development planning is needed. Nowadays， the development of the entire world is characterized by close-knit connectivity of sea， land and air transport and network infrastructure. When an overall development plan is made， especially plans for sub-regions， all these areas need to be taken into consideration. Some provinces and regions can establish new strategic designs for integrated development based on existing accomplishments made in transportation networks and infrastructure construction， serving the purpose of becoming a connection point along the Belt and Road.

For example， Guangxi can position itself as a focal point for China-ASEAN cooperation， more specifically， the hub of connectivity between China and ASEAN， and work out plans for the future development of the Beibu Gulf Economic Zone accordingly， which may lead to some innovative ideas.

On the other hand， China and ASEAN need to promote their cooperation in both “hard” and “soft” fields. Hard fields refer to areas like connectivity infrastructure， industrial production and equipment manufacturing， while soft fields include environmental protection， education， cultural exchanges， healthcare and other areas. A large number of private companies in these industries are poised to enter the ASEAN market， and cooperation between China and ASEAN in these fields needs to be further enhanced.

The emphasis on cooperation in soft fields echoes Chinese President Xi Jinping’s call to build a “green， healthy， intelligent and peaceful” Silk Road. In this area， too， Guangxi serves as a good example. The region can give specialized support to China-ASEAN cooperation by capitalizing on major national projects such as the China-ASEAN Expo， the China-Malaysia Qinzhou Industrial Park， and the Malaysia-China Kuantan Industrial Park.

At the same time， with the assistance of the China-ASEAN Entrepreneurs Federation， Guangxi can launch the China-ASEAN University Network. Through crowdfunding or other similar funding measures， it can establish a network of universities recruiting students from ASEAN countries before expanding the network by including universities in other Chinese provinces and regions.

Additionally， Guangxi needs to strengthen its cooperation with ASEAN in talent training， so as to achieve the long-term goal of coordinated development in both hard and soft areas.