S. China's Guangxi actively engages in digital economy of ASEAN

Aerial photo taken on Nov. 10, 2020 shows the scenery of Yongjiang River in Nanning, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Lu Boan)

NANNING, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region has actively engaged in the digital economic development in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), with the help of the China-ASEAN Information Harbor. 

The China-ASEAN Information Harbor Co., Ltd., a Guangxi-based info-tech company, has been dedicated to China-ASEAN digital and information industrial cooperation over the past few years.

A new app launched by the China-ASEAN Information Harbor in Malaysia in March this year has gained in popularity among the local residents, which offers services such as payment of utility bills and online games. 

Thanks to the continuous industrial integration between China and ASEAN, the local people's acceptance of various online service software is also increasing. The operating income of the app rose rapidly from 1 million yuan (about 151,900 U.S. dollars) in March to 2 million yuan in May. It is expected that the monthly revenue of the app will exceed 3 million yuan by the end of the year, according to Li Ying, an official of the info-tech company. 

The mainstream e-commerce platform in Southeast Asia, Lazada, has outperformed during the "Double 11" online shopping spree, with more than 350,000 brands and sellers involved in the event and thousands of new brands debuting. 

The rapid development of the digital industry in ASEAN is based on the needs of local social development and also draws on the successful experience of China's digital industry development, said Li. 

Thanks to the interconnection facilities launched by the China-ASEAN Information Harbor, such as the submarine and terrestrial optical cables and the cloud computing centers, the information interaction between China and ASEAN has become more convenient, further promoting development of the multi-level digital industry integration between China and ASEAN. 

"Currently, the role of information and communication technology is increasing worldwide. We have witnessed the digital economy becoming a new engine for economic growth in China and ASEAN," said Virasac Somphong, consul general of Laos in Nanning. (Edited by Hu Pingchao with Xinhua Silk Road, hupingchao@xinhua.org)