By Zhong Yin, People’s Daily
A recent study released by the Inter Region Economic Network, a leading independent African think tank, showed that China’s cooperation with Africa was highly recognized by Africans for infrastructure construction, quick decision making, and timely completion of engineering projects.
It once again proved that China, through efficient and effective actions, has brought tangible benefits and opportunities to Africa.
China always adheres to the vision of peaceful development and shares its development dividend with the rest of the world. China’s modernization is not only for its own development, but also for the wellbeing of the whole world. It has opened up broader prospects for the common development of mankind.
The Chinese have always believed that “You yourself desire rank and standing; then help others to get rank and standing.” China’s modernization – featuring common prosperity, balanced material and cultural progress, harmonious coexistence between humans and nature, and peaceful development – will be shared by a huge population. The Chinese path to modernization is based on China’s conditions, and reflects the evolution of human society as a whole.
There is no set form of modernization or one-size-fits-all modernization standards in the world. Today, Chinese stories are hot topics around the world due to China’s huge development success. However, behind the stories are not only exponential economic growth of a major country, but also a unique path to modernization and the charm of a new model for human progress.
The world’s development is multi-dimensional, and history is never a lenient movement. People of all countries are entitled to choose their own development paths and institutional models, and all efforts of individual countries to independently explore the path to modernization in light of their specific national conditions are worthy of respect.
China’s new model for human progress has refuted the myth that modernization can be achieved only by following the capitalist model. The country’s success indicates that there doesn’t exist a fixed model for the path to modernization, and the one that suits you well will serve you well.
China is pursuing modernization as a “latecomer.” Developed countries in the West went through a “serial-type” course of development, from industrialization to urbanization, and to agricultural modernization and informatization. The whole course has so far taken them over 200 years. On the contrary, China’s development is a “parallel-type” one, which means the country experiences all the above processes simultaneously.
It cost China only decades to have grown from a “latecomer” to a new growth pole of global modernization, a process that took developed countries several centuries. China’s modernization has blazed a trail for other “latecomers,” and proves that it’s totally possible for countries to pursue a development path suited to their own national conditions.
Different from the old path of Western modernization that seeks primitive accumulation with expansionism and follows the law of the jungle, China’s modernization has no relation with colonization, war or conflict. It is advanced with peace, cooperation and win-win results.
Pursuing true multilateralism, China holds that all countries should write international rules and manage global affairs, and that multilateralism is about having international affairs addressed through consultation.
In the new era, China firmly safeguards international equity and justices, follows the principle of extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits, and never hesitates to speak up for other developing countries.
On the vast African continent, two railways enjoy a special status in history. One is the Tanzania-Zambia Railway, a “freedom railway” that was built by over 50,000 Chinese engineering technicians in 1960s and 1970s. More than 60 Chinese experts rest forever on this land far away from home. The other is the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway, which adopts Chinese standards and technologies and was built with Chinese equipment. It is driving the transport and economic development of the entire East Africa.
The two railways, with their special status in history and remarkable contribution nowadays, demonstrate that the Communist Party of China has always been bearing in mind the development of the African continent.
