Beijing; In a rare public appearance, Alibaba Group Holding's founder Jack Ma, who has kept a low profile since Beijing's regulatory crackdown two years ago, discussed the difficulties facing the public in 2022 as China faces its worst ever economic crisis. facing severe financial crisis Dealing with the large COVID-19 outbreak.
I hope to see you all offline as soon as possible, Ma said in a two-and-a-half-minute video that was posted on social media and confirmed by her charitable foundation.
The address did not state where exactly he was. The video shows the billionaire in a white shirt sitting behind a round table in front of a black wall covered with art.
In a live video speech that has become an annual event under his Rural Teachers Initiative, he told 100 teachers in rural China that he had "had a tough year." "You got to educate while protecting the kids."
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In reading the prepared remarks, Ma noted how "cheerful" she is still a "cheerful" and "committed" teacher. He urged them to "take care of yourselves and the kids during this time". The program was launched in 2015 to help teachers working in rural China.
On the eighth day of the last month in the Chinese lunar calendar, also known as the Laba Festival, Ma invited rural teachers to visit Hainan Island in south China's Hainan Island, which lasted five years before the pandemic .
To support their work in rural education, the Jack Ma Foundation provided cash grants totaling 100,000 yuan ($14,260) to 100 teachers in each program. Three years ago, the event was held online and Ma saw a video of it.
According to online video clips of Ma's most recent video, he sat behind a round table in front of a black wall covered in artwork.
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He asked teachers to "take care of themselves and the children during this time", adding that while he was "cheerful" and "committed" he still seemed to be in trouble.
He said he hoped to see all the teachers again in person soon and assured them that his foundation would help them if they faced any problems.
Ma stepped down as executive chairman of Alibaba at the age of 55. Businesses he founded, including Alibaba and its fintech affiliate Ant Group, came under regulatory scrutiny in 2020 amid Beijing's crackdown on the technology industry.
Since Chinese securities regulators suspended Ant Group's $39 billion dual listing in Shanghai and Hong Kong in 2020, the former outspoken Alibaba frontman has chosen to avoid the spotlight. Ma's speech at a financial conference in Shanghai, where he criticized China's financial regulations, led to the suspension.
Ma last appeared in public in January 2022 for the same rural teachers initiative. According to a November article in the Financial Times, he had been living in Tokyo for six months.
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Although Ma has given up his corporate positions and even social positions such as chairman of the General Association of Zhejiang Entrepreneurs, the 58-year-old still represents Chinese entrepreneurship, and many are curious about his whereabouts.