Article and photos by Kenneth Ang, Director, Special Projects & International Liaison, Bar Council Secretariat
The Bar Council organised a mission to the Belt and Road Summit 2019, which saw the participation of 20 Members of the Bar from Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Melaka, and Penang.
Held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("SAR"), the Belt and Road Summit is an international flagship event organised by the Government of the Hong Kong SAR and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council ("HKTDC"). The first Belt and Road Summit was held in 2016, and the Malaysian Bar has organised missions to the event since the second Summit, in 2017.
Working with the HKTDC Malaysia office, we secured a group fee that was shared equally among the 20 participants. This provided an enormous savings of 95% off the Summit's normal rate of USD540 per participant. The two–day Summit saw an impressive attendance of more than 5,000 delegates from 65 countries, despite the current issues faced by the island territory.
Members who attended the Summit also had direct contact and networking opportunities with industry players from the top state–owned enterprises and private institutions from China and businesses from various countries. The Malaysian Bar delegation –– the largest mission group from Malaysia –– was invited to an exclusive "by invitation only" networking event hosted by the Dashun Foundation's Belt and Road Global Development Alliance and the Greater Bay Area Myanmar General Chamber of Commerce, held at the prestigious Hong Kong Club in Central, Hong Kong SAR.
The Bar Council thanks HKTDC (Hong Kong and Malaysia) and all Members of the Bar who participated in the Belt and Road Summit 2019.