On the morning of March 25, the sub-forum titled “Unlocking the Greater Potential of RCEP” was held during the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2026. Professor Chi Fulin, President of China Institute for Reform and Development (CIRD) and President of the Hainan Institute for Free Trade Port Studies (HIFTPS), was invited to attend and exchanged views with participants on topics including the achievements of RCEP over the past five years and its future prospects.

Prof. Chi Fulin noted that over the past five years, RCEP has made important progress in advancing regional economic integration and has become a highly influential free trade agreement attracting international attention. Second, under the RCEP framework, ties between China and ASEAN countries have become increasingly close. Third, RCEP brings together developed, developing, and least developed economies, and has charted a path of shared development. In response to new changes in the global economic and political landscape, he emphasized that RCEP should advance rule upgrading, accelerate expansion, and establish an independent secretariat as soon as possible. He reiterated the importance of upholding ASEAN centrality. Under current geopolitical changes, RCEP will play an increasingly important role in promoting regional economic integration and global free trade.

Prof. Chi Fulin further stressed that the principal challenge for RCEP at present remains development. It is essential to stay focused on development and avoid diverting it into other areas. Amid growing global uncertainty, particularly uncertainty in growth, development remains the greatest certainty for both China and ASEAN. Only open markets can generate vitality; without openness, there can be no development. He also emphasized the need to build a more binding, rules-based free trade agreement through opening up, which is crucial for advancing regional economic integration and driving global economic growth, with a focus on economic and trade cooperation and consensus-building.

Prof. Chi Fulin also introduced that CIRD, together with relevant institutions, has held the RCEP Media & Think Tank Forum for five consecutive years, with the sixth forum scheduled to be held in Haikou on May 9. In addition, CIRD has taken the lead in establishing the RCEP Think Tank Network.

The session was moderated by Zhang Shaogang, Executive Vice Chairman of APEC China Business Council Former Vice Chairman of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), Former Vice Chairman of China Chamber of International Commerce (CCOIC). Other participants included Raden Mohammad Marty Muliana Natalegawa, Former Foreign Minister of Indonesia; Jonathan K S Choi, Chairman of the Hong Kong Chinese General Chamber of Commerce; Mohd Faiz Abdullah, Executive Chairman of Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS) Malaysia; Danny Quah, Li Ka Shing Professor in Economics at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore; and Yose Rizal Damuri, Executive Director of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Indonesia.