HAIKOU /China/, March 19. /TASS/. The leadership of the southern Chinese province of Hainan held a ceremonial meeting to mark the launch of an almost completely carbon-free demonstration zone on the small island of Dongyu, which hosts the annual Boao Forum for Asia (BFA), Hainan Daily reported.
According to the newspaper, the event was attended by Ni Hong, China's Minister of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, Feng Fei, Secretary of the CPC Hainan Provincial Committee and provincial Governor Liu Xiaoming. After the meeting ended, they exchanged views on improving the level of urban planning.
Ni Hong said the establishment of a near-zero carbon emission demonstration zone in Boao is an important project to contribute to the realization of Chinese President Xi Jinping's vision of ecological civilization. "I hope Hainan will ensure that the whole demonstration zone is well managed," he stressed. "It should become a showcase for the world to see China's green low-carbon development technologies and practices."
According to Feng Fei, Hainan will make use of its environmental advantages and accelerate the development of low-carbon supply chains. The secretary of the Party Committee specified that such measures will affect both urban and rural areas.
The project to build a zero-carbon demonstration zone in Boao has been underway since 2022 through the efforts of China's central government and Hainan's administration. The high-tech system set up on Dongyu enables efficient air circulation and cooling in the buildings where the BFA is held and uses solar energy to light up the surrounding area.
The BFA has been held regularly since 2001 and has about 30 participating countries (Asia-Pacific countries). This year it will be held from March 26-29 under the theme "Asia and the World: Shared Challenges, Shared Responsibilities". The Boao Forum for Asia is called the Eastern Davos; it is an important platform for signing important agreements, coordinating positions between representatives of business and government circles of Asian countries and all other regions of the world. Chinese authorities pay great attention to its development and consider this mechanism as an effective instrument of soft diplomacy, which promotes and strengthens Beijing's international contacts.