Hao Zheng, a native of Beijing, holds a master's degree in mass journalism communication and was a visiting researcher at the Center for Northeast Asian Studies at the Brookings Institution, USA, 2008-2009. Since 1990, he has served as a senior journalist and director of the International News Department in Ming Pao, Asia Television and Hong Kong Commercial Daily, specializing in international news and covering major news, covering major news all over the world.
Since the launch of the "Dragon Walking the World" program in 2016, Zheng Hao has been the host, and on the third anniversary of the launch of "Dragon Walking the World", Zheng Hao expressed his impressions on doing "Dragon Walking the World" in the past three years.
Unconsciously, the "Dragon Walks the World" column has gone through a full three years. Three years, 157 episodes, poured into the painstaking efforts of each colleague of our program group, reflecting the professional wisdom and hard work of Phoenix people. But looking back on these three years, through the vivid cases and stories in the "Dragon Walking the World" program, what makes me feel the most is the pioneering, hard-working and enterprising spirit of many Chinese enterprises and entrepreneurs, whether it is central enterprises and private enterprises, or large and small.
It is they, in accordance with the national strategic deployment and policy guidance, closely follow the general trend of international economic development, integrate into the great changes in the world's industrial structure, meet the great challenges of the international multilateral system, actively adjust the industrial layout, overcome various difficulties, bravely go overseas, create a large number of employment opportunities for countries and regions along the "South-South cooperation" and "Belt and Road" initiatives, as well as for mostly underdeveloped and poor countries, promote the harmonious development of the local economy and society, and carry forward the "building a community with a shared future for mankind" proposed by the Chinese government. The Goal makes an important contribution.
From the very beginning, the positioning of the "Dragon Walking the World" program has been very clear: based on the "first scene" and "first-hand information", with specific facts, cases, combined with certain theoretical analysis, detailed description of the success and setbacks of Chinese enterprises in the "going out" development strategy, for more Chinese enterprises to prepare to expand overseas markets, to provide practical and valuable reference.
The program group does not pursue the "first time", because "Dragon Travels the World" is a weekly program, but also a column with "TV record" as the means of expression, it needs more detailed analysis and in-depth visits, multi-level and multi-angle analysis of the causes and consequences of the overseas development and layout of Chinese enterprises, and how to solve various challenges and difficulties encountered in the process of entrepreneurship.
Geopolitical risks and unstable national political situations are often the biggest challenges for Chinese companies to expand their business overseas. Dragon Quest uses a large number of examples to explore and try to provide ways to solve these practical problems. For example, Chinese companies' investment projects in Myanmar have encountered the impact of political turmoil, and local NGOs and environmental groups have also blocked and besieged Chinese projects. In the end, through government coordination and cooperation and communication between enterprises and local governments, the two sides understand their concerns in a timely manner and properly solve practical problems; for example, after the Malaysian election, the new government stopped the four large-scale projects in which Chinese-funded enterprises participated, how to solve this problem, which is not only a process of consultation and communication between the governments, but also a problem that Chinese-funded enterprises participating in the construction of the front line need to be taken seriously. The Chinese real estate project in Borneo, Malaysia, successfully resolved the problem of different demands from local groups, allowing the project to continue construction. After the situation on the Korean Peninsula eased, it brought opportunities for Chinese enterprises to go to the DPRK for development. However, how to avoid sanctions is also a concern of Chinese enterprises. Through our lens, we can see successful cases with rich business experience in the DPRK, which may be very inspiring for them.
In September 2018, Malaysia, the Dragon Travel team was on the road.
Employment, wages, workers' basic rights and interests and environmental protection are problems often encountered by Chinese-funded enterprises in overseas development. Due to business development concepts, management methods, especially differences in different cultures and religious beliefs, Chinese-funded enterprises may be responsible for conflicts between Chinese-funded enterprises and local governments, trade unions or environmental protection groups. In the "Dragon Walks the World" program, the film crew often meets and hears these challenges encountered by Chinese-funded enterprises. By telling their stories, the audience can see how these enterprises overcome difficulties, how to adhere to the principle of mutual respect, mutual understanding, consultation and cooperation, not only to safeguard the legitimate and reasonable rights and interests of the enterprises themselves, but also to strictly require foreign employees to abide by labor rules, and everyone works together to achieve win-win cooperation. In this regard, "Dragon Travel" often introduces how Chinese enterprises operating in the local area can help local employees improve their business capabilities, hold various training courses, establish and improve the assessment system, and improve the "institutionalized" management level of enterprises.
In June 2018, Sri Lanka, the Dragon Travel team interviewed the Hambantota Port Project.
How the "Chinese standard" is in line with the "Western standard" is also an aspect of the discussion in "The Dragon Walks the World". Chinese enterprises have many successful construction and operation experiences in China, and have formed their own set of construction, management and operation standards. But how can these standards be applied to the projects of the investing countries, and how can the "Western standards" that the investor countries have become accustomed to be "Sinicized" integrated? It is a problem that Chinese-funded enterprises often encounter when participating in the construction of large-scale overseas infrastructure projects in recent years. To solve this problem, it is not only necessary for Chinese-funded enterprises to have beautiful and successful project construction examples in the past, but also need to negotiate and communicate with partners, gradually change their concept of "only Western standard theory", and accept the "Chinese standard" that is both economical and practical, safe and reliable. In Central and Eastern European countries, Chinese enterprises should also help joint ventures gradually meet the "EU unified standards" and prepare for the formal accession of "quasi-member states" to the EU.
In June 2018, the 9th International Infrastructure Investment and Construction Summit Forum.
In Africa and South America, the competition between Chinese enterprises and Western countries is becoming increasingly fierce. If Chinese-funded enterprises want to enter these traditional concepts of Western "backyards", they not only need their own strength, but often have to withstand the pressure of public opinion from the West. In recent years, the so-called "resource plunder theory", "neo-colonizer theory" and "debt trap theory" have emerged in an endless stream against China, which has brought political distress to the local development of Chinese enterprises. The "Dragon Walks the World" program also often refutes the groundless accusations of the West through specific examples. For example, the energy cooperation project in South Sudan, the Tanzan railway and road project, the Greek port reconstruction project, etc., have used a large number of specific examples to refute western fallacies and prove that "win-win cooperation" is the goal. In addition, China is also paying more and more attention to strengthening cooperation with "third parties" in the construction of the "Belt and Road". For example, in the construction of the Indonesian port industrial park, there are companies from South Korea, Japan and other countries to participate in the construction with China; in the acquisition of foreign oil companies, there are also Chinese-funded enterprises and other countries to participate in the operation of joint shares, so as to achieve "risk sharing, benefit sharing", for the "Belt and Road" to open up a broader space for cooperation, providing valuable experience.
The digital economy, e-commerce, new energy and new technologies, etc., are the new driving forces that the Chinese government focuses on advocating and promoting future economic development. Abroad, how Chinese companies can help investor countries develop these new areas is another focus of Dragon Travel. In Japan, for example, electronic payment has not yet entered the daily lives of ordinary people due to traditional consumption habits and the lack of electronic payment platforms. How to help the local government build an electronic payment system and introduce China's "mobile payment" has not only become a business opportunity seized by a small Chinese private enterprise, but also received good results through their unremitting efforts.
Three years later, "Dragons In the World" is still moving forward in exploration. According to the changing situation of the world economy, the program team will continue to uphold the professionalism of media personnel in accordance with the changes in the world economy and the overseas development needs of Chinese-funded enterprises, and produce more and more wonderful programs in the future.
The dragon travels the world, and the phoenix follows, not seeking glitz, but seeking truth. 2019 We're off again!
Text: Zheng Hao
Editors: Song Bilin, Meng Xiaodu