Message from the Co-Chair
Evan G. Greenberg
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Fellow delegates and distinguished guests,
I am honored to serve as co-chair of China Development Forum 2024 and would
like to extend my sincerest welcome to all of you. I wish to thank the
Development Research Centre of the State Council and the China Development
Research Foundation for their work in shaping the 2024 forum agenda and making
this year’s event a reality.
For nearly a quarter century, the China Development Forum has been the
distinguished venue for policy debate and open and constructive dialogue between
Chinese policymakers and foreign experts from the international business and
academic communities. This year’s forum follows that tradition and will focus on
“The Continuous Development of China.” Building upon China’s five-year
modernization plan unveiled in 2022 at the 20th National Congress, we will
examine priorities relevant not just to China but to the entire global community
such as economic development and innovation. These focus areas are supported by
targeted structural reforms.
As one of the largest insurers in the world, my company, Chubb, has a long
and storied history in China dating back to 1792 when a predecessor firm began
providing protection to the pioneers of trade between the United States and
China. We are proud of our participation in over 200 years of U.S.-China
relations and the contributions we have made to the modernization of the Chinese
insurance industry. Leading global insurers such as Chubb, with experience,
knowledge, and technology, continue to play an active and supportive role in
China’s insurance marketplace. For example, as China becomes a more prosperous
society, its businesses grow, and the population becomes wealthier while aging.
Global insurers like Chubb have the experience and expertise to assist in
building a healthy and strong insurance industry that can effectively meet the
growing demands for protection and savings a modern society requires.
China’s economic growth is unprecedented in human history. As the size of
China’s economy has grown, so has its influence. China’s economic transformation
has created enormous opportunities for its people and for the world. The United
States and China, the two largest economies in the world, have each benefited
from trade and investment ties over the years. The U.S. and U.S. companies have
benefited from access to a sizable and growing Chinese market, while China has
benefited from access to the U.S. market, as well as capital, talent, and
technology exchanges going back many decades, and this has supported China’s
rise.
I have confidence in the Chinese culture and the hardworking nature and
entrepreneurial spirit of the Chinese people. And I believe that a strong and
prosperous China that supports and invests in the international system is a
force for good in the world. It is in this spirit of engagement that we can
address at this year’s forum a number of today’s global challenges. Solutions to
threats from war, disease, famine, global warming and artificial intelligence,
to name but a few, are more within reach when we are pulling in the same
direction than when we are splitting apart.
The China Development Forum provides an invaluable venue for participants
from government, business, and academia to candidly exchange views, learn about
each other’s interests, and seek common ground. I look forward to engaging with
you at China Development Forum 2024 to advance these goals.
Sincerely,
Evan G. Greenberg
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
