Recently, the Blue Book on Shanghai and the Belt and Road (B&R) initiative and a series of related reports were issued. The Blue Book and related reports were composed by Shanghai Academy (co-founded by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government) and Shanghai Institutes for International Studies (SIIS).

Chen Dongxiao, president of SIIS, said that as the first systematic and comprehensive report on a city’s participation in the construction of the B&R, the Blue Book’s research methods and analytical models will provide reference for other cities. Starting from the basics of Shanghai’s participation in the B&R, the research team mainly focused on quantitative and visual analysis in fields like investment, trade and finance, pushing forward with academic research that supports government policies, helping the government make more scientific and convenient policies.

Shanghai should play a leading role in B&R construction. Li Youmei, president of the Chinese Sociological Association and vice president of Shanghai Academy, said that we should implement the three national strategies: expanding the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone; launching a science and technology innovation board at the Shanghai Stock Exchange and experimenting with a registration system for listed companies; and supporting the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta region. In this way we can better leverage Shanghai’s role in opening up. The Blue Book’s release will provide strong intellectual support for B&R construction and reference for related decisionmaking departments and research institutes.

Huang Renwei, executive vice dean of the Fudan Institute of Belt and Road and Global Governance, said that Shanghai should provide high-standard services for B&R construction in terms of high-quality projects, strong capacity to raise capital, high-tech breakthroughs, high-level cultural integration and high-standard regulation of the B&R initiative.

Guo Changgang, executive vice dean of the Graduate School of Shanghai University, said that translations of the Blue Book and series of reports can help Shanghai carry out subsequent work and communicate with countries along the B&R route, which is beneficial to deepening the international community’s understanding of the B&R initiative.

(Edited by Su Xuan)