To help Beijing enterprises fend off security risks and resume overseas projects, the 10th monthly lecture on consular protection was held at BAIC Group on December 18. Jointly held by Municipal Foreign Affairs Office and State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the People's Government of Beijing Municipality, the lecture invited Gao Yan, Director of the Department of Infectious Diseases at Peking University People's Hospital, and Chen Nannan, one of China's first overseas security officers, to be the keynote speakers. Nearly 300 managers and employees from BAIC Group's foreign affairs and international business departments attended the lecture.

Around the theme of overseas security risk prevention and consular protection for enterprises, the two speakers gave speeches respectively titled "COVID-19 Prevention and Control for Overseas Personnel" and "Overall Risk Response for Overseas Enterprises". Gao Yan introduced the health effects of COVID-19 and response measures, and reminded overseas enterprises and personnel to implement anti-pandemic measures in a scientific and optimistic way. Chen Nannan advised enterprises going global to forestall security threats, make targeted security plans according to situations in specific countries, and learn about what consular protection and aid Chinese embassies and consulates in foreign countries provide and how to seek them.

"The consular protection lecture gives us a comprehensive and detailed introduction to pandemic prevention and control and security protection for enterprises going global. It provides important information for enterprises' overseas development," said a leading official at BAIC Group's international business department. After the lecture, the participating employees had lively interactions with the two speakers about the effectiveness of coronavirus vaccines, how COVID-19 vaccination affects the "double negative" certificate, self-treatment measures for COVID-19 patients, standards for hospital discharge, and common anti-pandemic medicines.

In face of the immense challenges posed by the Covid-19 outbreak, the Municipal Foreign Affairs Office has actively practiced its tenet of "foreign affairs for the people" and escorted Chinese citizens and enterprises overseas. Focused on guiding and supporting them to better adapt to the overseas situation, the Municipal Foreign Affairs Office has worked hard on preventive consular protection, and organized ten consular protection lectures to help them effectively defuse and cope with various security risks and enhance their capability of self-protection, playing an important role in reinforcing Beijing's "security defense line" amid the pandemic.