BEIJING, June 25, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — “La única forma de ser provechosamente nacional consiste en ser generosamente universal.” That is Spanish for “the only way to be profitable on a national level is to be generous on a universal one.”
On June 5, 2013, Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a speech to the Mexican Senate entitled Seeking Common Development to Create a Better Future. He quoted the line which was taken from a book by Mexican poet Alfonso Reyes (1889-1959). The quote expresses that in pursuing one’s own interests, one should bear in mind the common good and that the world is one big family. It made Xi’s speech more understandable and struck a chord with the audience on site.
China will do well only when the world does well and vice versa. China, as the world’s largest developing country, is proactive in implementing this philosophy. The country remains committed to championing peace, development, cooperation and mutual benefit, advancing its reform and opening up, promoting common development and offering the world new opportunities.
On September 21, 2021, Xi attended the general debate of the 76th Session of the UN General Assembly via video link. He emphasized how development is key to human wellbeing and proposed the Global Development Initiative (GDI).
China has been seeking to renew its global focus on development issues and explore pathways for practical cooperation in an era when daunting challenges and great uncertainties are rife. The GDI aims to steer global development toward a new stage of balanced, coordinated and inclusive growth. Its main six features are:
Staying committed to development as a priority;
Staying committed to a people-centered approach;
Staying committed to benefits for all;
Staying committed to innovation-driven development;
Staying committed to harmony between humanity and nature;
Staying committed to results-oriented actions.
The GDI offers the potential to accelerate global progress on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) listed in the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development—adopted by all UN member states in 2015.In January 2022, the Group of Friends of the GDI was officially launched at the UN headquarters in New York. Nearly 70 countries have joined the group so far.
June 24 marked the first anniversary of the High-Level Dialogue on Global Development, which took place on the sidelines of the virtual 14th BRICS Summit. The event was hosted by Xi and attended by the presidents of Algeria, Argentina, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, Senegal, South Africa and Uzbekistan. Xi said, “Development is a timeless theme for humanity.” As a member of the developing world, China will take practical steps to lend its continuous support to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Xi added.
Today, the undertakings China promised for the GDI have all taken off, for example, the Global Development and South-South Cooperation Fund and the Global Development Promotion Center.
Also, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Sub-Fund of the UN Peace and Development Trust Fund, proposed by China, has so far provided $61.4 million for 48 UN projects, benefiting 74 countries in Africa, the Asia-Pacific, Latin America and Europe. Most of them are the world’s least developed countries, landlocked developing countries and small island developing countries. These projects cover all the SDGs and have brought big changes to the countries where they are located.
More than 100 countries and international organizations, including the UN, have voiced their support for the GDI. The 100-plus early harvest programs designed to accelerate the initiative’s implementation have benefited more than 60 developing countries.
China has further signed bilateral documents with more than 20 countries for cooperation under the GDI.
In a world where multiple challenges and risks are intertwined, the global community must come together to get the SDGs back on track. Now is the time to rev up international development cooperation. The GDI offers a platform to help make this possible.
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