An Extraordinary 2020
October 1st marks the 71st anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. Over the past 71 years, the Communist Party of China(CPC) has united and led the Chinese people of all ethnicities in a tireless struggle which yield a huge leap in economic and social development. Taking the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics represents the inexorable outcome of history and the choice of the Chinese people.
2020 is a crucial year in realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. China will build a moderately prosperous society in all respects and achieve our first centennial goal at the end of this year. China's rural population living under the current poverty line will be all lifted out of poverty, and the poverty reduction goal of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development will be achieved 10 years ahead of schedule in China, a miracle in China's history. According to estimates by the World Bank, China has reduced poverty population by 850 million in the past 40 years, contributing more than 70% of global poverty reduction.
China’s achievements in poverty reduction have accumulated valuable experience for global poverty reduction. First, adhere to a people-centered approach. Formulate a scientific poverty reduction strategy, give full play to the advantages of China's system, adopt methods such as east-west pairing-off cooperation in poverty alleviation, designated fixed-point poverty alleviation by party and government offices, and participation of social forces in poverty alleviation to gather the forces of the whole society. Second, persist in focusing on development. Combine environment-led, industry-led and education-led poverty alleviation, improve infrastructure and public services in poverty-stricken areas, and promote work in the economic, social and environmental fields in a balanced manner. Third, stimulate the impoverished population to get rid of poverty. Pay attention to helping people increase confidence in their own ability to lift themselves out of poverty and see that they can access to the education they need to do so. Encourage the poor to change their destiny through their own efforts with the support of poverty alleviation policies. Forth, implement targeted poverty reduction and alleviation measures. In addition to formulating a macro strategy, much attention is given to specific methods. The CPC sends millions of poverty relief cadres to the villages, register each case of poverty household, and prescribe the right approach for poverty reduction. Fifth, adhere to openness and cooperation. We uphold the spirit of openness, inclusiveness and mutual learning, actively participate in the process of economic globalization, participate in international development cooperation, and promote the development of international poverty reduction.
While eradicating its own poverty, China has always been doing its best to help developing countries out of poverty. China has established the "China-UN Peace and Development Fund" and the "South-South Cooperation Trust Fund" to fully implement the "100 Poverty Reduction Projects" announced by President Xi JinPing at the High-Level Roundtable on South-South Cooperation. China will continue to align the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development with the joint construction of the “Belt and Road” to create a new engine for poverty reduction and development. According to the World Bank report, the joint construction of the “Belt and Road” will lift 7.6 million people out of extreme poverty and 32 million people out of moderate poverty in related countries, providing a strong momentum for international poverty reduction.
Getting rid of poverty remains an urgent challenge for the international community as more than 700 million people are still living below the poverty line in the world. China will continue to deepen South-South cooperation in poverty reduction with the developing countries, strengthen the exchange of experience in governance and development strategies, build more poverty alleviation brands and pilot projects, actively implement the results of FOCAC summits and China-aided poverty reduction projects to help developing countries overcome development bottlenecks.
2020 is a year that China and the world are experiencing severe test of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the face of the COVID-19 outbreak, the Chinese government has always put people’s life safety and health first, adopted the most comprehensive, strict, and thorough measures. The Chinese people have achieved major strategic results in the national fight against the pandemic in just three months with determination and relentless efforts. While consolidating the containment of pandemic, China has accelerated the resumption of work and production. In the second quarter of this year, China's economy rebounded with a 3.2% growth, becoming the first country in the world to emerge from the pandemic. According to the forecast of the International Monetary Fund, China will become one of the few countries that will maintain positive growth in 2020 , leading the world in economic recovery.
Since the outbreak of the epidemic, China has upheld the concept of a community with a shared future for mankind, persisted in pursuing multilateralism, and actively fulfilled its international obligations. In face of tremendous pressure on our own battle against the pandemic, we have provided 100 million US dollars to the UN COVID-19 Global Humanitarian Response Plan, dispatched 35 medical expert teams to 34 countries, donated 283 batches of anti-epidemic assistance to more than 150 countries and 4 international organizations, and exported medical materials to more than 200 countries, which have strongly supported the global pandemic control. China will provide US$2 billion over two years and provide US$50 million to the China-FAO South South Cooperation Trust Fund to help with COVID-19 response and the recovery of economy in affected countries, especially in developing countries. China is committed to promoting a new type of international relations featuring mutual respect, fairness, justice, and win-win cooperation, firmly safeguard the international system with the United Nations as the core and the international order based on international law.
2020 is a year for China and South Sudan to work together to meet challenges. the two countries have shared weal and woe over the years. At the most difficult time of China's fight against the pandemic, the South Sudanese government and people gave China strong solidarity and support. The Chinese government and people have always been concerned about South Sudan and have provided more than a dozen batches of anti-epidemic supplies to the country. In late August, the Chinese medical expert team came from a long distance to share the experience and practices of anti-pandemic with South Sudan. China donated 3,000 tons of rice to South Sudan for flood relief and the unification of army. Construction of the Jur River Bridge in Wau aided by China is about to start. Despite the adverse effects of COVID-19, China continues to actively promote cooperation with South Sudan in the fields of education, health, energy, and infrastructure, striving to improve people’s livelihood and promote economic recovery.
We are pleased to see that breakthroughs have been made in the peace process in South Sudan this year, with the successful formation of a new transitional government, progress in the formation of local governments, and overall compliance with the ceasefire. The peace in South Sudan is promising but still facing many challenges. Peace is a blessing and war is a curse to all people. China sincerely hopes that the various parties in South Sudan will continue to consolidate the fruits of peace, accelerate the resolution of remaining issues, completely eliminate conflicts, and achieve national peace and stability. China is committed to working with all stakeholders to advance the peace process, develop economy and promote people’s livelihood.
2021 will mark the 10th anniversary of the independence of South Sudan and the 10th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and South Sudan. It is also the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China. These are grand events for both China and South Sudan. President Xi Jinping points out that the world has been going through profound changes unseen in a century. Mankind is a community of shared destiny, no country can be immune from a major crisis. Unity and cooperation are the right path. Taking the 10th anniversary of our diplomatic ties as a new starting point, we will jointly respond to challenges, deepen practical cooperation, and promote greater development of China-South Sudan relations for the benefits of the two peoples.