Xi promises opportunities for overseas Chinese investment

China will continue working to encourage more investment from overseas Chinese entrepreneurs, President Xi Jinping said on Wednesday, as a forum on such investment opened in southwest China.

In his congratulatory letter to the 12th World Chinese Entrepreneurs Convention, taking place in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan Province, Xi said overseas Chinese entrepreneurs will be offered a "grand stage" to realize their visions during the great renewal of the Chinese nation.

He said these entrepreneurs, with their hard work and outstanding traditions, live harmoniously with people around the world and have contributed to the world economy and social progress.

Overseas Chinese also made indelible contributions to the success of China's opening up. With their capital, technology, management expertise and business networks, they helped promote China's economic and social development and facilitated exchanges and cooperation with the outside world, the president noted.

China's ambition for an affluent society and the renewal of the Chinese nation offers unprecedented opportunities for overseas Chinese entrepreneurs, according to Xi, who expressed hope that they would actively participate in the country's reform drive and modernization, growing their businesses to mutual benefit in cooperation with China.

At the opening ceremony of the convention, China's top political advisor, Yu Zhengsheng, said that a prosperous and stable China will bring more opportunities for the world and create space and a more equitable environment for overseas Chinese entrepreneurs.

Yu, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, urged delegates to actively take on their roles in pushing China's economic restructuring to achieve a win-win situation. They should also better assimilate themselves into the countries in which they live and promote local development, he said.

The biennial World Chinese Entrepreneurs Convention, an important platform for exchanges between overseas Chinese entrepreneurs, was initiated by the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry in 1991.

Previous conventions have been hosted around the globe, in countries including Singapore, Thailand, Canada, Australia and Japan, while the last Chinese city to host the event was Nanjing in 2001.

This year, it has attracted more than 3,000 entrepreneurs from over 100 countries, according to the organizing committee.

During the two-day convention, more than 100 invited guests from the government, businesses and academics will discuss 15 topics including transnational development of Chinese enterprises and opportunities in the development of China's western region.