Within the framework of the “International Symposium on Integrated Governance of Large-scale Disasters and Economic Risks”, held on 13/14 May 2017 in Qianhai/Shenzhen, the Authorities of Qianhai/Shenzhen (the Qianhai Shenzhen-Hongkong Modern Service Industry Cooperation Zone of Shenzhen), the Beijing Normal University, and Global Risk Forum, GRF-Davos, have signed a Framework Agreement of Cooperation. The cooperation wants to address the variety of risks from natural hazards to technical, biological, social and financial risks, all across different political institutions, national and international organizations, countries and business sectors. In this agreement, the Parties have expressed their mutual desire to promote further strategic co-operation and for that purpose to engage in research and development to promote scientific knowledge, technology and practical solutions on integrated risk governance and risk and disaster management, on global climate change, on governance and risk related topics related to the Road and Belt Initiative, to support the UNISDR Sendai Framework for DRR, and the Sustainable Development Goals. For that purpose, a Global Risk Forum Davos in Qianhai, Shenzhen will be established.
GRF Davos has been represented in Shenzhen by Michael Havbro Faber Nielsen, GRF Davos Research Fellow and Professor in the area of Risk Informed Decision Support for Structures at the Department of Civil Engineering at Aalborg University, Denmark.
The International Symposium on Integrated Governance of Large-scale Disaster and Economic Risks has been closed by adopting an 8 point recommendation paper, the Shenzhen Qianhai Consensus Paper. The Consensus Paper addresses a number of activities to be started, among others the organization of a biennial IDRC Shenzhen Davos Conference to be held in 2019 for the first time. The Road and Belt Initiative will become an important topic at the IDRC Conferences.
The multi-trillion dollar Belt and Road Initiative is probably the most ambitious and all-encompassing economic development project in human history, connecting Asia and Europe in a vast network of roads, railways, pipelines, airports, sea ports, transnational electrical grids and fiber optic lines of communication though the creation of an economic land belt traversing Central Asia and the Middle East as well as a maritime road that links China with the ports of the Indian Ocean, East Africa and the Mediterranean. The goal is to bolster trade by overcoming one of the biggest impediments to global growth, the chronic lack of infrastructure.
The consensus paper is available for download here: consensus paper
The signing ceremony was featured in the Qianhai Shenzhen News. Watch the full report here: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/4bd9k0bZFPyi4SRz8Lr9kQ