‘Chinese Dream,' Global Ambition - Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative

Much focus on Chinas ambitious Belt and Road Initiative has understandably been on the massive scale of its infrastructure projects and the implications for the economies of the countries involved. But more is at stake than just building railways, ports and pipelines.

As proponents of Chinas expanding global ambitions, Christopher H. Lim and Vincent Mack Zhi Wei argue that the BRI is a central component of Beijings agenda to cement its leadership in the world.

- Christopher H. Lim & Vincent Mack Zhi Wei

Is the world ready to accept a China-led development model through Beijing’s Belt and road Initiative (BRI), which envisions massive infrastructure projects across a whole range of countries? Having adequate funding and technology is necessary but not sufficient to ensure the success of the BRI. Fundamentally, China needs to be able to inspire confidence in its partners. If it wants the moral legitimacy to lead the world using the BRI, China will need to ensure that its domestic socio-economic and environmental issues are well managed. Failing that, the aftereffects would likely spill over to the economies within the BRI network.

China’s credibility hinges on whether it can provide concrete and tangible evidence that its approach can address key domestic challenges in an adequate and timely manner: turbulence in the Chinese stock market; the emergence of numerous “ghost cities” all over the country; rising unemployment due to the impending technology tsunami; and environmental issues such as high levels of pollution that have occurred as a result of rapid industrialization.

TACKLING DOMESTIC CHALLENGES

The Chinese stock market, when it is well managed, helps secure financing to fund economic development within China as well as the overseas expansion of Chinese enterprises. more important, the stock market is an ideal platform to raise financing for some of the BRI’s projects.

According to published data, as of February 2016, the total capitalization of stock markets in China was estimated to be Us$11.049 trillion (including Us$3.165 trillion from Hong Kong). this accounts for 15.9 percent of the Us$69 trillion capitalization among the 60 major stock exchanges globally.1