Telecom giant China Mobile International (CMI) has announced plans to boost investment in Central Asia over the coming years, citing exponential economic growth and rapid digital transformation in the region.

“At the current level, I would say it's around HK$10 million. It is an eight-digit number of investments,” Kevin Chan, the telecommunication operator's Head of Carrier Business, told RTHK.

“In the future, with the growth and demand, I believe that amount will multiply in a few years."

He pointed out that 5G networks were only launched in Central Asia in 2023, adding that Kazakhstan’s aggressive push into artificial intelligence and digitalisation has opened up significant opportunities for the sector.

“In the previous five years, we saw there's a rapid economic growth in Central Asia. I think the fastest growth country that we saw was in Kazakhstan.”

“They set up a new government department to facilitate the growth of AI and digitalisation. Having that policy backed up, I think that will actually generate a lot more opportunity in smart solutions. I believe the growth will be exponential.”

Chan’s remarks came as Chief Executive John Lee is set to lead a delegation of high-level business representatives from Hong Kong and the mainland to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan early next month to explore business opportunities.

During the visit, CMI will sign a Memorandum of Understanding on smart logistics with QazPost, Kazakhstan’s national postal operator.

Chan said this will be a win-win situation for both sides.

“We're going to give them our smart logistics platform solutions. On top of that, because we also have other projects happening in Central Asia, especially in Kazakhstan, QazPost will be providing us with the logistic capability.”

Chan also highlighted Hong Kong's strategic edge as a global hub for submarine communication cables.

He noted that CMI has linked Central Asia’s terrestrial networks with Hong Kong's submarine network, saying this has sped up data traffic from Central Asia to many major economies in the world, such as Singapore and Japan.

In turn, Chan said connecting terrestrial networks of Hong Kong and Central Asia creates an alternative data transit route from the SAR to Europe, bypassing traditional pathways through South Asia and the Middle East.