INTERNATIONAL FORUM
INGENIEUR
Boao Forum for Asia Annual
Conference 2015
By Foo Mee Sim
T
he Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) Annual
Conference 2015 was held in Boao, Hainan
Province, China on March 27-29 ,2015. The
conference adopted the theme “Asia’s New Future:
Towards a Community for Common Destiny” and
was attended by 2,786 political, business and
academic leaders as well as journalists from
49 countries and regions. Among them were
seven presidents, four Prime Ministers including
Malaysian Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib bin
Abdul Razak who delivered the keynote address.
This was the 14th BFA Annual Conference.
The four-day conference focused on several key
areas such as the Silk Road Economic Belt and
a 21st century Maritime Silk Road as well as the
Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and
ASEAN Economic Community. Among the sessions
were those on a Green Environment, Technology
and Innovation for a sustainable future, World
Investment Organisation & the Global Investment
Agenda, Energ y Resources, New Energ y
Vehicles, Asset Management boom and Internet
Governance.
As a short introduction to BOAO, BFA is a nonGovernmental and non-profit organisation founded
in 2001. BFA is committed to promoting regional
economic integration and bringing Asian countries
closer to their development goals.
The Boao Forum is the most prestigious and
premier forum for leaders in Government, business
and academia in Asia and other continents to
share visions on the most pressing issues in this
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VOL 62 APRIL – JUNE 2015
VOL 55 JUNE 2013
dynamic region and the world at large. The Forum
is committed to promoting regional economic
integration and bringing Asian countries closer to
their development goals.
Initiated in 1998 by former President of the
Philippines Fidel V Ramos, former Prime Minister
of Australia Bob Hawke, and former Prime Minister
of Japan Morihiro Hosokawa, the Boao Forum for
Asia was formally inaugurated in February 2001.
Countries across the region have responded with
strong support and great enthusiasm, and the
world has listened attentively to the voice coming
from a tiny, quiet and scenic island located at the
southernmost part of China - Boao, the permanent
site of the Annual Conference of the Forum since
2002.
Background of The BOAO Forum for Asia
The last half century has witnessed the
remarkable progress made in economic and social
development by Asian countries. As a result, Asia's
influence in international and regional affairs has
been steadily increasing. The economic take-off
in East Asia over the past two decades, which is
perceived by the world as the East Asian miracle,
led to the rapid development of the overall Asian
economy. This has made Asia prominent among
the regions in the world, which have undergone
the most dynamic economic development.
Although Asian countries have participated in
many international conferences and organisations
such as APEC and PECC, Asia as a whole lacks