Key figures join in Boao Forum
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| A photo exhibition of the 10th anniversary of BFA takes place on April 16, 2011. [Wang Zhiyong/China.org.cn] |
![A photo exhibition of the 10th anniversary of BFA takes place on April 16, 2011. [Wang Zhiyong/China.org.cn]](http://images.china.cn/attachement/jpg/site1007/20110416/000cf1a48b7f0f139c224d.jpg "A photo exhibition of the 10th anniversary of BFA takes place on April 16, 2011. [Wang Zhiyong/China.org.cn]")
Once a fishing village, the Chinese town Boao in the southernmost Hainan Island is now turning into the "Asian Davos", with skiing on Alps mountains replaced by golfing on seashore resort.
On April 15, the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) celebrated its 10th anniversary, bringing some 1,400 participants together, including top political and business leaders from over 40 economies, including the BRICS nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa).
Under the theme of "Inclusive development", the participants held some 20 panel discussions covering wide topics during the three-day conference.
Chinese President Hu Jintao attended the conference, as did Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, South African President Jacob Zuma, South Korean Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik, Spanish Premier José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, Ukrainian's Mikola Azarov, and New Zealand's Bill English.
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| Chairman Yasuo Fukuda (right) of the Board of Directors of BFA, Japan's former prime minister is attending the BFA on April 14, 2011. [Wang Zhiyong/China.org.cn] |
![Chairman Yasuo Fukuda (right) of the Board of Directors of BFA, Japan's former prime minister is attending the BFA on April 14, 2011. [Wang Zhiyong/China.org.cn]](http://images.china.cn/attachement/jpg/site1007/20110416/000cf1a48b7f0f139c5b4f.jpg "Chairman Yasuo Fukuda (right) of the Board of Directors of BFA, Japan's former prime minister is attending the BFA on April 14, 2011. [Wang Zhiyong/China.org.cn]")
Other attendees and participants include Henry Paulson, former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury; Ambassador John Negroponte, former U.S. Director of National Intelligence and Deputy Secretary of State; and Carlos Gutierrez, former U.S. Secretary of Commerce.
Of course, China's basketball player Yao Ming is another hit of the biggest event on this tropical island.
"It was an important symbol of the growing solidarity and desire for cooperation in Asia under the new situation. In the ten years since, the BFA has played an important role in building consensus in Asia, making Asia's voice heard and promoting Asian cooperation," Chinese President Hu Jintao said. "It is, at the same time, a witness and driver of this historical process."
Former Japanese Prime Minister and now Chairman of the Board of Directors of BFA Yasuo Fukuda also expressed his willingness to advance Asian integration during his term. He took the post last April.
"The Boao Forum offers an important opportunity to be part of a global conversation," said Duke University President Richard H. Brodhead. Brodhead was invited as a panelist in a session entitled "Rethinking Education: University Presidents vs. Corporate CEOS."
Adam Gordon, a writer for Forbes magazine, said that the Boao Forum "signals growing intention to coordinate views and act in closer alignment, and press towards future empowerment and responsibility of non-Western world leaders."
After ten years enduring concessions, the BFA has been a stage that most of China's rich want to be seen on.
"Boao Forum for Asia is always in a warm and relaxed atmosphere, just like the weather in Hainan, especially suitable for people with a leisurely attitude to exchange and discuss on an equal footing," said Pan Shiyi, chairman of Beijing-based real estate developer Soho China. Pan earned his first bucket of gold in Hainan two decades ago has always been a participant of the BFA.
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