The three-day Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) Annual Conference 2013 kicking off in Hainan on April 6 is themed "Asia seeking development for all: Restructuring, responsibility and cooperation".

The 54 sessions include dialogues and roundtables, bringing together political, business and academic leaders from different parts of the world.

The opening plenary session on April 7 will see an impressive gathering of heads of state, who range from Kazakhstan President Nursultan Abishevich Nazarbayev, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and his New Zealand counterpart John Phillip Key. Chinese President Xi Jinping will deliver the keynote address.

In keeping with its original characteristic, the conference will host dialogues with officials and celebrities from the world of finance and industry, like International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde, former US secretary of labor Elaine Lan Chao and investor-philanthropist George Soros.

However, this year there is also a divergence. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates will talk on investment for the poor, while Hsing Yun, founder of the Taiwan-headquartered Buddha's Light International Association, will dwell on the crisis that the virtues of honesty and integrity are facing in China. In this typically Asian approach to life, the Buddhist master will consider why society has broken off with the ideals it once firmly believed in and the way out of the moral crisis.

As Asia grows aware of the soft power of cultural diplomacy, the conference is giving serious consideration to the arts. James Cameron, the acclaimed director of Hollywood blockbusters like Titanic and Avatar, will speak on his latest film and a young leaders' roundtable will feature pianist Li Yundi and singer Jane Zhang.

Three industries have been singled out for special attention in view of their importance for Asia as well as globally. With the shale gas revolution in North America altering the landscape of energy supply, a roundtable will discuss the impact on traditional fossil fuels and the changing landscape of energy security.

Small and medium enterprises will share the focus with representatives from India, the US, Europe and China discussing how to run SMEs successfully, innovations, and small and micro business financing. The third component will be the auto industry with its opening up and integration coming under discussion.

The 2013 conference boasts the presence of four Nobel laureates. Dan Shechtman, Nobel Prize for chemistry in 2011; Martin Evans, Nobel Prize for medicine in 2007; Edmund Phelps, Nobel Prize for economics in 2006 and Ferid Murad, Nobel Prize for medicine in 1998 will be speaking at various sessions.

Though primarily casting an Asian voice, the conference has a special session each on Africa and Latin America, the two regions whose trade and engagement with the region is growing.

Nearly 2,000 people from 43 countries and regions are attending the event with the business community accounting for a whopping 80 percent of participants. The Boao Forum for Asia was established in 2001 with its debut conference held the following year.

(China Daily 04/05/2013 page12)