The Macao Special Administrative Region is playing a key role as a bridge linking infrastructure cooperation between China and Latin American and Caribbean nations, according to participants at a forum.
Highlighting Macao’s role as a connection point, Stephen Tsang Kam-wing, Suriname’s minister of public works and spatial planning, who is in the SAR for the first time to attend the 17th International Infrastructure Investment and Construction Forum and Exhibition, said the event provided a platform for high-level networking among different economies.
“It is a great forum for companies and countries to connect with each other,” Tsang told China Daily.
Organized by the Commerce and Investment Promotion Institute of the Macao SAR and the China International Contractors Association, the annual forum, held from June 10 to 12 and themed “Boosting Green Digital Infrastructure Connectivity”, saw the participation of more than 3,500 political and industry leaders from over 70 countries and regions.
As one of the highlights of the forum, the 12th China-LAC Infrastructure Forum was held on June 11, themed “Green and Digital Drivers for a shared Future: Fostering New Progress in China-LAC Infrastructure Cooperation”.
The forum serves as a key platform that reinvigorates Macao’s role in fostering cooperation between China and Spanish-speaking countries and consolidating its position as a “precise connector”.
In his opening remarks, Li Chenggang, China's international trade representative with the Ministry of Commerce and vice-minister of commerce, said China is ready to work with LAC partners to strengthen development strategy, deepen infrastructure cooperation, promote sustainable development, and jointly build a China-LAC community with a shared future.
“Within the framework of high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, more than 200 infrastructure projects have been implemented between China and LAC countries, creating millions of jobs,” said Li.
By the end of 2025, the total value of project contracts signed by Chinese enterprises in Latin America is expected to surpass $320 billion, with complete turnover exceeding $200 billion, according to Li.
Juan Anthony Edghill, minister of public works of Guyana, stressed the importance of the continuity of engagement between the LAC community and China.
Referring to green and digital drives for a new future, Edghill said fostering new progress in China and LAC infrastructure cooperation will help promote regional development and shared prosperity.
The China-LAC Infrastructure Forum in Macao is an important platform of coordination that links governments, the private sector, and all stakeholders in the infrastructure, said Miryam Saade Hazin, officer in charge of the Infrastructure and Logistics Unit of the International Trade and Integration Division at the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean.
“Bringing together governments, international organizations, financial institutions and the private sector is essential to address one of the most pressing challenges of our time: How to build infrastructure that supports sustainable, resilient and inclusive development in Latin America and the Caribbean,” she told the forum.
She said that infrastructure is fundamentally a development and (increasingly) an integration issue, and that significant gaps persist across the LAC region, with fragmented transport systems, limited cross-border connectivity and supervision, and insufficient multimodal integration.
Zhang Run, director general of the Department of Latin American and Caribbean Affairs at the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said China-LAC ties, rooted in mutual respect and shared benefit, drive common prosperity and contribute to a more equitable global governance system.
Wang Qi, deputy director general of the Department of Outward Investment and Economic Cooperation of the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, said China-LAC infrastructure cooperation should be integrated with supply and industrial chains, green development, and digital economy, with a focus on improving people’s livelihood.
Kirk D M Humphrey, minister of transport and works and senior minister coordinating infrastructure of Barbados, said the opportunities for cooperation emerging from the forum directly support the country’s mission to build a modern and digitally enabled Barbados by 2030 and that it seeks opportunities through the digital Silk Road and other partnership frameworks.
Senior executives from China Railway Construction Corp, Power Construction Corp of China, China Energy Engineering Corp, and United States-based Caterpillar Inc shared details about their respective projects in the LAC market at the forum, drawing on cooperation experience and outlining their vision for the future.
Contact the writer at kelly@chinadailyapac.com
