Global leaders and experts on the Belt and Road Initiative are gathering in the southern Chinese city of Zhuhai for the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road Forum on November 28 to 30. 

Under the theme of cooperation, communication and value, the three-day forum will take place in the coastal province of Guangdong, a sea transportation hub linking Belt and Road countries. It is also the major forum on international communication held after the 19th CPC National Congress. 

Gree Electric Appliances is one of the  prime example of Guangzhou enterprises going global under the Belt and Road Initiative. 

In Pakistan, the company has set up a joint venture DWP company, as well as a technical training center, to cultivate local talents. Meanwhile, it has expanded investment in Brazil, with its air conditioners supplied for the 2016 Rio Olympics.

So far, it has 11 production bases around the world and produces products sold in more than 20 countries and regions worldwide.

Dong Mingzhu, CEO of Gree Electric, says she is excited to bring the high technology and "China Quality" to the globe. “Even though we now only have overseas factories in Brazil and Pakistan, we are going to build more bases abroad in different countries. We not only vow to make China a manufacturing powerhouse, we are also eager to bring our technology to other countries to help them grow better,” Dong addressed at the forum. 

While being optimistic about the Belt and Road Initiative, Bernard Dewit, Chairman of Belgian-Chinese Chamber of Commerce, said challenges still remain for in-depth cooperation between China-EU companies under the initiative.

"The challenge in the near future will involve small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) in the Belt and Road Initiative. Very often European and even Chinese SMEs are not aware of the opportunities offered to them. The EU-China connectivity platform should set up a specific working group to deal with this as SMEs are keen to go into the Chinese and European economies," said Dewit, who just received the Chinese government's Friendship Award on September 30 in 2017.

In 2016, the total trade volume between Guangdong and countries along the Belt and Road reached nearly 200 billion US dollars, accounting for over 20 percent of the country’s total trade. In the first half of this year, trade volume grew 25 percent year on year.