The Boao Forum for Asia (BFA; zh, c=博鳌亚洲论坛, p=Bó'áo Yàzhōu Lùntán), initiated by 25

Asian countries This is a list of sovereign states and dependent territories in Asia. It includes sovereign state, fully recognized states, states with limited but substantial international recognition, ''de facto'' states with little or no international recogn ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

(increased to 28 in 2006), is a nonprofit that hosts high-level forums for leaders from government, business and academia in

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

and other continents to share their vision on the most pressing issues in this region and the world at large. Though its fixed address is in

Bo'ao Bo'ao is a coastal town in the city of Qionghai, Hainan, China. The town is near the mouth of the Wanquan River where it discharges into the South China Sea. The town is away from downtown Qionghai, away from Haikou and away from Sanya. Bo' ...

Hainan Hainan is an island provinces of China, province and the southernmost province of China. It consists of the eponymous Hainan Island and various smaller islands in the South China Sea under the province's administration. The name literally mean ...

province,

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

, its Secretariat is based in

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

. The forum, sometimes known as the “Asian Davos”, takes its name from the town of Boao, located in China's southern Hainan province, which has been the permanent venue for its annual conference since 2002.

History

The Forum is committed to promoting regional economic integration and bringing Asian countries even closer to their development goals. Initiated in 1998 by

Fidel V. Ramos Fidel Valdez Ramos (; March 18, 1928 – July 31, 2022), popularly known as FVR, was a Filipino general and politician who served as the 12th president of the Philippines from 1992 to 1998. He was the only career military officer to reached ...

, former President of the Philippines,

Bob Hawke Robert James Lee Hawke (9 December 1929 – 16 May 2019) was an Australian politician and trade unionist who served as the 23rd prime minister of Australia from 1983 to 1991. He held office as the Australian Labor Party, leader of the La ...

, former Prime Minister of Australia, and

Morihiro Hosokawa is a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan, prime minister of Japan from 1993 to 1994. He led an eight-party coalition government which was the first Japanese government not headed by a Liberal Democratic Party (Japan), Libera ...

, former Prime Minister of Japan, the Boao Forum for Asia was formally inaugurated in February 2001. The founding of the BFA was driven by the People's Republic of China and founded by 26

n and

Australasia Australasia is a subregion of Oceania, comprising Australia, New Zealand (overlapping with Polynesia), and sometimes including New Guinea and surrounding islands (overlapping with Melanesia). The term is used in a number of different context ...

n states on 27 February 2001. The organisation held its first meeting from 12 to 13 April 2002. Discussions at the BFA focus on economics, integration, cooperation, society and the environment. In the past the forum also addressed China's entry into the

World Trade Organization The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland that regulates and facilitates international trade. Governments use the organization to establish, revise, and enforce the rules that g ...

, as well as Southeast Asia's economic crisis during the 1990s. The geopolitical strategy '

China's peaceful rise China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the second-most populous country after India, representing 17.4% of the world population. China spans the e ...

' was a topic of discussion for the forum in 2004. In addition to its annual meeting, the BFA also sponsors other forums and meetings related to Asian issues.

Forums

2008

The Boao Forum For Asia Annual Conference 2008 was held on 10–13 April 2008. It was attended by heads of government from countries including

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

and

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

. It also saw the historic meeting of

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

's Vice President-elect

Vincent Siew Siew Wan-chang (; born 3 January 1939), known also by his English name Vincent Siew, is a Taiwanese politician who served as the ninth vice president of the Republic of China (Taiwan) from 2008 to 2012. He was the first Taiwanese-born Prem ...

, with then

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

paramount leader Paramount leader () is an informal term for the most important Supreme leader, political figure in the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The paramount leader typically controls the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the People's Liberatio ...

Hu Jintao Hu Jintao (born 21 December 1942) is a Chinese retired politician who served as the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 2002 to 2012, the president of China from 2003 to 2013, and chairman of the Central Military Comm ...

2009

The 2009 forum was held in Boao, Hainan, from 17 to 19 April 2009. The theme was "Asia: Managing Beyond Crisis".

2010

The 2010 forum was held in Boao, Hainan, from 9–11 April 2010. The theme was "Green Recovery: Asia’s Realistic Choice for Sustainable Growth".

2011

, the President of China and

General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party The general secretary of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party ( zh, s=中国共产党中央委员会总书记, p=Zhōngguó Gòngchǎndǎng Zhōngyāng Wěiyuánhuì Zǒngshūjì) is the leader of the Chinese Communist Part ...

, attended the 2011 Annual Meeting from April 14 to 16. Other leaders in attendance included

Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev (born 14 September 1965) is a Russian politician and lawyer who has served as Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia since 2020. Medvedev was also President of Russia between 2008 and 2012 and Prime Mini ...

, the President of Russia,

Dilma Rousseff Dilma Vana Rousseff (; born 14 December 1947) is a Brazilian economist and politician who served as the 36th president of Brazil from 2011 until her impeachment and removal from office on 31 August 2016. She is the only woman to have held the ...

, the President of Brazil, and

Jacob Zuma Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma (; born 12 April 1942) is a South African politician who served as the fourth president of South Africa from 2009 to 2018. He is also referred to by his initials JZ and clan names Nxamalala and Msholozi. Zuma was a for ...

, the President of South Africa. The subject of the meeting was "Inclusive Development: Common Agenda and New Challenges." The Energy, Resources & Sustainable Development Conference for the organisation was held in

Perth, Western Australia Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

between the 11 and 12 July 2011. The conferences brought together business, industry and political leaders in the region to discuss energy and resource security, development and trade.

Australian Foreign Minister The Minister for Foreign Affairs, also known as the Foreign Minister, is the minister of state of the Commonwealth of Australia charged with overseeing the creation and implementation of international diplomacy, relations and foreign affairs po ...

Kevin Rudd Kevin Michael Rudd (born 21 September 1957) is an Australian diplomat and former politician who served as the 26th prime minister of Australia from 2007 to 2010 and June to September 2013. He held office as the Leaders of the Australian Labo ...

stated China will invest US 1 trillion dollars abroad and Australia is in a good position to attract capital to develop new mines, infrastructure to service China's insatiable appetite for energy and resources. Rudd also indicated while Chinese capital is essential for Australia's economic future, China needs to do more in relaxing foreign investment rules for Australian companies such as restrictions on types of businesses, equity restrictions and branch or representative office caps.

2013

This year forum was held from 6 to 8 April in Hainan Province.

Bill Gates William Henry Gates III (born October 28, 1955) is an American businessman and philanthropist. A pioneer of the microcomputer revolution of the 1970s and 1980s, he co-founded the software company Microsoft in 1975 with his childhood friend ...

George Soros George Soros (born György Schwartz; August 12, 1930) is an American investor and philanthropist. , he has a net worth of US$7.2 billion, Note that this site is updated daily. having donated more than $32 billion to the Open Society Foundat ...

and

Christine Lagarde Christine Madeleine Odette Lagarde (; , ; born 1 January 1956) is a French politician and lawyer who has been the President of the European Central Bank since 2019. She previously served as the 11th Managing Director of the International Monetar ...

attended.

Xi Jinping Xi Jinping, pronounced (born 15 June 1953) is a Chinese politician who has been the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and Chairman of the Central Military Commission (China), chairman of the Central Military Commission ...

delivered the keynote address. This year focus was on "Restructuring".

2014

The 2014 forum was held in Hainan, from 8–11 April 2014, with the official opening address from Chinese premier

Li Keqiang Li Keqiang ( zh, s=李克强, p=Lǐ Kèqiáng; 3 July 1955 – 27 October 2023) was a Chinese economist and politician who served as the seventh premier of China from 2013 to 2023. He was also the second-ranked member of the Politburo Standing ...

on 10 April. The theme of the forum was "Asia's New Future: Identifying New Growth Drivers". Indian business tycoon Ratan Tata was appointed as a member of the Board of Boao Forum. The post is a rare distinction for an Indian in the Chinese government-backed influential body.

2015

Leaders or deputies from 16 countries, including

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

, the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

Qatar Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...

and

Zambia Zambia, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa. It is typically referred to being in South-Central Africa or Southern Africa. It is bor ...

, attended the forum held from 26 to 29 March. The theme of this year forum is "community of shared destiny".

2016

The 2016 forum was held in Hainan, from 22 to 25 March 2016. Participants at the annual conference focused on Asia's New future: New Dynamics, New Vision and took part in panel discussions. Chinese Premier

made the keynote speech at the opening of the annual conference.

2017

The 2017 forum was held from 23 to 26 March 2017. Keynote speech was made by Chinese Vice Premier

Zhang Gaoli Zhang Gaoli ( zh, 张高丽; ; born November 1946) is a Chinese retired politician who served as the first-ranking vice premier of China between 2013 and 2018, and as the seventh-ranking member of the Politburo Standing Committee of the Chi ...

at the opening plenary of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2017. The theme for the conference was "Globalization and Free Trade: The Asian Perspectives".

2018

The Boao Forum for Asia 2018 was held between 8 and 11 April at Hainan Province, China. The theme of this year forum was "An Open and Innovative Asia for a World of Greater Prosperity". Xi Jinping gave the opening speech at the opening ceremony. He said China will open up market including lowering tariffs on imported autos amid increasing trade tensions between US and China.

2019

The 2019 forum was held in Hainan, from 26 to 29 March 2019. Chinese Premier

made the keynote speech at the opening of the annual conference.

2020

The 2020 Forum was cancelled due to COVID-19.

2021

In 2020, China joined the

G20 The G20 or Group of 20 is an intergovernmental forum comprising 19 sovereign countries, the European Union (EU), and the African Union (AU). It works to address major issues related to the global economy, such as international financial stabil ...

-led Debt Service Suspension Initiative, through which official bilateral creditors suspended debt repayments of 73 of the poorest debtor countries. On April 20, Xi Jinping delivered a keynote speech and attended the opening ceremony of the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) 2021 Annual Conference via video. At the 2021 Boao Forum, Export-Import Bank of China president Hu Xiaolin stated that the interest of both debtors and creditors should be considered in debt suspension. Hu stated, "Debt suspension is neither debt reduction nor debt cancellation. It is an adjustment made to tackle difficulties at specific times" and that outright cancellation weakens financial stability.

2022

At the 2022 Forum, Xi announced China's

Global Security Initiative The Global Security Initiative (GSI, ) is an initiative proposed by Chinese Communist Party general secretary Xi Jinping during the annual Boao Forum on 21 April 2022. Officially, the initiative is meant to "uphold the principle of indivisible ...

. The Global Security Initiative identifies six commitments: (1) common, comprehensive, cooperative, and sustainable security; (2) respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries; (3) abiding by the purpose and principles of the UN Charter; (4) peacefully resolving disputes between countries through dialogue; (5) taking the security concerns of all countries seriously; and (6) maintaining security in both traditional and non-traditional fields. The principles outlined by the Global Security Initiative are long-standing elements of China's security policy and little operational detail was provided.

2023

The 2023 annual meeting was held in Boao, Hainan from March 28 to 31. This annual meeting has completely resumed offline, and participants are not required to wear masks. Singapore Prime Minister

Lee Hsien Loong Lee Hsien Loong (born 10 February 1952) is a Singaporean politician and former military officer who served as the third Prime Minister of Singapore, prime minister of Singapore from 2004 to 2024, thereafter serving as a Senior Minister of S ...

Malaysian Prime Minister The prime minister of Malaysia (; ) is the head of government of Malaysia. The prime minister directs the executive branch of the federal government. The Yang di-Pertuan Agong appoints the prime minister who is a member of Parliament (MP) wh ...

Anwar,

Spanish Prime Minister The prime minister of Spain, officially president of the Government (), is the head of government of Spain. The prime minister nominates the ministers and chairs the Council of Ministers. In this sense, the prime minister establishes the Gove ...

Pedro Sanchez and other international dignitaries attended the meeting, and also the Chinese Premier

Li Qiang Li Qiang (; born July 1959) is a Chinese politician who has been serving as the eighth and current premier of China since March 2023. He has been elevated to the second-ranking member on the Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist ...

delivered a speech at the opening ceremony.

2024

The 2024 Annual Conference was held from March 26 to 29 in Boao, Hainan.

Zhao Leji Zhao Leji (born 8 March 1958) is a Chinese politician who is the current chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress and the third-ranking member of the Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party. In his ...

, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the

National People's Congress of China The National People's Congress (NPC) is the highest organ of state power of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The NPC is the only branch of government in China, and per the principle of unified power, all state organs from the State ...

, attended the opening ceremony and delivered a keynote speech.

2025

The 2025 Annual Conference was held in Boao, Hainan, from March 25 to 28, with the theme of "Shaping Asia's Future in a Changing World".

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Boao Forum For Asia Organizations based in Hainan Foreign relations of China Foreign policy and strategy think tanks in China Political and economic think tanks based in China Global economic conferences