SAGE ADVICE: Deputy Secretary-General and Acting Governor Zhu Xiaodan (center) addresses journalists at the International Consultative Conference on the Future Economic Development of Guangdong Province in Guangzhou City of south China's Guangdong Province on November 14, with BP Chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg (right). Leaders in business and research offered consultation on strategies to transform and upgrade the Guangdong industrial economy (CHEN BOYUAN)

Deputy Secretary-General and Acting Governor Zhu Xiaodan addressed domestic and foreign media regarding plans to upgrade and transform the economy of south China's Guangdong Province at a press conference on November 14 in Guangzhou City, capital of Guangdong.

Citing sluggish export and service industry growth and a pessimistic global economic outlook, Zhu announced plans to transform and upgrade Guangdong's economy by lowering the province's dependence on exports, facilitating the development of secondary and tertiary industries and exploring new export markets.

"The most prominent problem facing export entrepreneurs is they do not receive big and sustainable orders," said Zhu, remarking that while trade in European and American markets will continue, "We will focus on emerging markets," such as southeast Asia and the Middle East.

The International Consultative Conference on the Future Economic Development of Guangdong Province was initiated in 1999 for the governor of Guangdong to solicit feedback from top economic advisors. The theme of this year's conference is "Creating New Advantages for Guangdong's Economic Development by Accelerating Industrial Transformation and Upgrading."

At the press conference, the governor was flanked by 15 foreign consultants, business and research leaders including chairmen, CEOs, and decision-makers from several multinational companies and academic institutions. Besides Governor Zhu, journalists' questions were answered by Herve Machenaud, senior executive vice president of Electricity of France (EDF), and Daniel J. Brutto, president of UPS International.

Asked about the challenges of doing business in Guangdong, Brutto commented that the Pearl River Delta is a "logistically perfect place," but added that customs procedures and obstacles to air traffic posed difficulties for the America-based package delivery company, which seeks to attract business from advanced manufacturing industries in Guangdong.

Other executives in attendance included Carl-Henric Svanberg, chairman of BP, Hans Vestberg, President and CEO of Ericsson, and Takashi Kawamura, chairman of Hitachi.

Provincial leaders hope foreign financial institutions will play a role in fostering continued development and are formulating plans to support industrial restructuring by establishing a corporate insurance system, at the advice of Nobuyuki Koga and Toshiaki Egashira, executives of Japanese financial holdings firms Nomura and MS & AD Insurance Group, respectively.

Renewable energy is also crucial to industrial transformation, as the province lacks energy resources and is too densely populated to efficiently import energy. Nuclear energy is one solution to this problem, according to EDF's Machenaud. The French utility giant is a heavyweight in nuclear energy development. Sun Yat-Sen University in nearby Zhongshan City has recently established a Sino-French Institute of Nuclear Engineering and Technology to educate Chinese nuclear engineers in the French Grand Ecole style.

Zhongshan had recently concluded celebrations of the 145th birthday of its namesake, Dr. Sun Yat-Sen, on November 12. Sun was the leader of the 1911 Revolution—also known as the Xinhai Revolution—which saw the end of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912) and the beginning of modern China. Continuing efforts to develop and modernize Guangdong can be understood as honoring his legacy.

(Reporting from Guangdong Province)