By He Yin, Peoples Daily
Chinese President Xi Jinping chaired the High-level Dialogue on Global Development in Beijing
via video link and delivered important remarks on June 24.
At the event, leaders of BRICS countries, as well as relevant emerging markets and developing
countries had an in-depth discussion on the future of global development.
Xi proposed to foster a development paradigm featuring benefits for all, balance, coordination,
inclusiveness, win-win cooperation and common prosperity, and announced important measures
taken by China to implement the Global Development Initiative (GDI), charting the course for
revitalizing global development and building confidence and strength in achieving common
prosperity.
"One deep impression I get is that only through continuous development can the people's dream
for a better life and social stability be realized," Xi noted.
With his personal experiences, Xi explained the importance of development for the human society,
which demonstrated his care for the people and commitment to the world as a leader of a major
country.
In recent years, the important concepts and plans raised by China have been playing an
increasingly important role in leading global development.
When Xi attended the UN Sustainable Development Summit in 2015, he encouraged the world to
hold on to development as a master key and work out a course of equitable, open, all-round and
innovation-driven development. He also announced that China would establish an assistance fund
for South-South cooperation and other important measures to promote global development.
At last year's UN General Assembly session, he put forth the GDI as the world was facing
widening North-South gap, insufficient drivers in international development cooperation, and
increasing marginalization of development issues on the international agenda, so as to encourage
the international society to refocus on development issues. The GDI has become an important
public good for tackling development challenges.
The dialogue marked the launch and implementation of the GDI. Xi proposed at the event that the
world needs to jointly build international consensus on promoting development, jointly create an
enabling international environment for development, jointly foster new drivers for global
development and jointly forge a global development partnership.
These proposals target at the outstanding challenges facing global development and provide a
direction for future international development cooperation.
Leaders attending the event gave high evaluation on Xi's remarks and believe China's proposals
are in line with the concerns and demands of developing countries. They said these proposals are
conducive to building international consensus, mobilizing development resources and accelerating
the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The world is currently at a critical juncture in the shaping of the future course of humanity, and
global development is facing a number of new risks and challenges.
Some countries, politicizing and marginalizing development issues, resort to the approach of
building "exclusive yards with high walls" and extreme sanctions, creating division and
confrontation.
What they are doing is placing impacts on the global economic system, which will hurt not only
themselves, but also the rest of the world if they are loosed to keep doing so, destroying decades
of efforts made in international economic cooperation and costing a huge price for the people
around the world.
The serious and complicated situation calls for emerging markets and developing countries to
further enhance solidarity and coordination to work as one. We should put development front and
center on the international agenda, build an open world economy, and make global governance
fairer and more just. No country or individual shall be left behind.
China is always a contributor to global development that promotes global development
cooperation with concrete actions. At the dialogue, Xi announced important measures taken by
China to implement the GDI, including upgrading the South-South Cooperation Assistance Fund
to a Global Development and South-South Cooperation Fund, increasing input to the UN Peace
and Development Trust Fund, setting up a global development promotion center and a global
knowledge network for development, and issuing a Global Development Report.
At the event, a deliverable list of 32 measures was released, focusing on eight areas including
poverty reduction, food security, the anti-COVID-19 fight and vaccine development, financing for
development, climate change and green development, industrialization, digital economy, and
connectivity in the digital era. The list includes plans to set up a Global Alliance for Poverty
Reduction and Development (GAPRD), launch a Food Production Enhancement Action,
establish an International Vaccines Research, Development and Innovation Alliance and so on.
China expects to work with all relevant parties to implement these outcomes and share projects in
which all parties can participate, so as to accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for
Sustainable Development.
