What is the DSR?

Launched in 2015, the digital silk road is a mainly private-sector-driven program, supported by the state, with the aim of enhancing China’s digital presence abroad, and thereby extending its commercial and political influence. It is so far going well, particularly in the emerging world.

This subset program comes from Belt Road Initiative (BRI) announced in 2013. The BRI represents a significant shift in global trade, laying the foundations for a paradigm shift in supply chain and logistics management.

The long term vision is that Belt Road Initiative is the vehicle by which China is restoring the ancient Silk Road.

Three main drivers

• Chinese telecoms equipment makers,
• Data Centre and Storage Infrastructure along the economic corridors,
• Chinese companies using this to export interpretation of smart city sensors and data platforms.

Geography

• Asia, the Middle East, Europe, Africa and Latin America.

Some projects of the program:

• Optic fiber projects in Latin-America, Africa and South Africa (initial budget 7B$).
• In Africa, Huawei and ZTE have built much of the digital infrastructure, including health care connectivity.
• Huawei 5G expansion, that will enable a basis for Internet of the Things projects.
• Smart shipping, which goal is optimize operations through enabling just in time operations as well as acting as information centers that enables optimized transport mode choices that connect with the port.
• Smart city projects.
• Build submarine and terrestrial optic fables
• Building of data centers.
• BeiDou satellite navigation system have been identified as key asset for DSR.
• China’s Blockchain Services Network (BSN)

China Standards 2035

It is a roadmap that will be published in 2020 Q4 for defining the set of standards that private and public companies from China should be addressing. This blueprint will be updated (I did not found the frequency).

The landscape

Some schedules found

Some readings:

• The China – EU rail network: direct China-Europe rail link between Hefei and Dourges in France and the difficulties to solve issues in Alataw Pass in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Zone.