The Key to Human Advancement: China's Global Development Initiative and its People Centered Development

From the archive to facilitate further writing and discussion

This still reads as if it occurred yesterday and remains as important today as when it was first published. It helps explain the growing ties between China and the Arab world, not just the Persian Gulf region. The Multipolar World project and Global South development are related and are topics that will be further explored. This provides essential background to what’s now happening and what will occur in the future.

China's president Xi Jinping is currently in the Persian Gulf region consulting Arabs at the first ever China-Arab Summit and included the first ever China-GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) Summit. Prior to Xi's arrival on Thursday, 8 December, the Saudi newspaper Al Riyadh published a letter written to the Arab people by Xi Jinping. The letter's purpose is explained in the title it was given: "Carrying Forward Our Millennia-old Friendship and Jointly Creating a Better Future.” The specifics about Chinese-Arab ties are there, but the overall content of the letter ought to be seen by the world as being addressed to one-and-all and rather similar to previous papers and speeches Xi has given on the issue of development, which 7/8ths of the world's people are quite keen about. Here it is in full:

I am coming back to Riyadh, bringing with me profound friendship from the Chinese people. I am here to join my Arab friends for the first China-Arab States Summit and the first China-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Summit and to pay a state visit to Saudi Arabia. Designed as a trip of building on the past and more importantly, of opening up a better future, the visit will carry forward our traditional friendship, and usher in a new era in China's relations with the Arab world, with Arab states of the Gulf, and with Saudi Arabia.

First, a time-honored friendship that goes back thousands of years

The exchanges between China and Arab states date back more than 2,000 years. The constant streams of caravans along the land Silk Road and the billowing sails along the maritime Spice Road have borne witness to how the Chinese and Arab civilizations interacted with and inspired each other across the Asian continent. It was through these exchanges that Chinese porcelain and paper-making and printing techniques were introduced to the West while Arab astronomy, calendar and medicine went all the way to the East. We have traded goods, sparked innovation, shared ideas, and spread the fruits of cultural exchanges to the rest of the world, leaving a splendid chapter in East-West engagement and mutual learning.

The contacts between China and Arab states of the Gulf are well documented. During the Eastern Han Dynasty, Gan Ying, a Chinese emissary, reached the "western seas," namely the Gulf, on his mission to the Roman Empire. This is the first official record of Chinese envoys reaching Arab states of the Gulf. More than 1,200 years ago, an Arab navigator, Abu Obeida, sailed from Sohar Port to the Chinese city of Guangzhou on a legendary journey that was later adapted to the exciting and well-known adventures of Sindbad. In the 1980s, a replica ship named the Sohar retraced the route opened by ancient Arab navigators, connecting the past and present friendly interactions between the two sides.

China and Saudi Arabia have admired each other and conducted friendly exchanges since ancient times. The prophet Muhammad said, "Seek knowledge even if you have to go as far as China." Seven hundred years ago, Wang Dayuan, a Chinese traveler of the Yuan Dynasty, arrived at Mecca which he described as a place with beautiful sceneries, mild weather, fertile rice fields, and a happy people in his book A Brief Account of Islands. It was an important book from which the Chinese learned about Saudi Arabia at that time. Six hundred years ago, Zheng He, a Chinese navigator of the Ming Dynasty, reached Jeddah and Medina on his oceangoing voyages, leaving behind him many stories of friendship and exchanges that are still widely told today. The joint Chinese-Saudi archaeological excavation of the ruins of the al Serrian port conducted in recent years has unearthed many porcelain wares of China's Song and Yuan dynasties. They stand as testaments to all those friendly interactions.

Second, solidarity and cooperation for a China-Arab community with a shared future in the new era

The Arab world is an important member of the developing world and a key force for upholding international fairness and justice. The Arab people value independence, oppose external interference, stand up to power politics and high-handedness, and always seek to make progress. Arab states are endowed with diverse resources, and have built industries with distinctive features, scored remarkable achievements in development, and demonstrated enormous potentials. The Arab civilization advocates the middle way and moderation, encourages inclusiveness and mutual learning, opposes clash of civilizations, and is deeply rooted in its rich culture and history. Be it on the world political, economic or cultural map, Arab states always claim an important place.

Since the 1950s, China has established diplomatic relations with all Arab states. Their interactions feature mutual understanding, mutual respect, mutual assistance and solidarity. They have become good friends treating each other as equals, good partners pursuing mutual benefit, and good brothers sharing weal and woe. In the 21st century, China-Arab relations have continued to move ahead against a fluid international landscape, and achieved historic leapfrog growth in political trust, mutually beneficial economic cooperation, and cultural mutual learning in both breadth and depth.

In the past decade, China-Arab relations entered a new era and registered a series of landmark and groundbreaking achievements in various areas. Collectively, China has established a future-oriented strategic partnership of comprehensive cooperation and common development with all Arab states. Individually, China has established comprehensive strategic partnership or strategic partnership with 12 Arab states, and signed documents on Belt and Road cooperation with 20 Arab states. Among Arab countries, 17 have expressed support for the Global Development Initiative (GDI), 15 have become members of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and 14 have participated in the China-League of Arab States Cooperation Initiative on Data Security.

Arab states firmly support the one-China principle and support China in safeguarding its core interests. Likewise, China supports Arab states in upholding sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity. On issues such as the Palestinian question, China's firm support for Arab states has been consistent and unwavering. Major infrastructure projects jointly built by the two sides, including the Djamaa El Djazair mosque of Algeria, the Lusail Stadium of Qatar, the new headquarters of the Central Bank of Kuwait, as well as the Merowe Dam, the Roseires Dam heightening, and the Upper Atbara Dams Complex Project of Sudan, have become landmarks of China-Arab friendship. China has set up 20 Confucius institutes and two Confucius classrooms in Arab states. And over 40 Chinese universities teach Arabic as a major, contributing inexhaustible energy for growing China-Arab friendship.

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, China and Arab states have come to each other's aid and navigated through the difficulties together. The two sides have carried out efficient cooperation in such areas as vaccine research and application, joint epidemic prevention and control, experience sharing, medical services and pharmaceuticals, setting a fine example of solidarity in fighting the virus. Under the framework of China-Arab States Cooperation Forum, 17 cooperation mechanisms have been launched to expand and substantiate the cooperation agenda, giving a strong boost to China-Arab relations and providing a paradigm for the solidarity and cooperation among developing countries.

The world is now undergoing momentous changes unseen in a century. Both China and Arab states face the historic mission of realizing national rejuvenation and speeding up national development. In this new context, China will work with Arab states to carry forward the traditional friendship and jointly build a China-Arab community with a shared future in the new era. China and Arab states will continue to hold high the banner of non-interference in internal affairs, firmly support each other in safeguarding sovereignty and territorial integrity, and jointly uphold international fairness and justice. We will continue to enhance together Belt and Road cooperation, keep expanding practical cooperation in such areas as food, energy, investment, financing and medical services, and pursue mutually beneficial cooperation with higher quality and in greater depth. We will continue to jointly act on the GDI and the Global Security Initiative so as to stabilize volatile regions and contribute more positive energy to peace and development. We will continue to jointly advocate peace, development, equity, justice, democracy and freedom -- the common values of humanity, strive to replace estrangement and clash of civilizations with exchanges and mutual learning, promote understanding and affinity between our peoples, and build "a garden of civilizations" featuring mutual appreciation and inspiration.

Third, joint endeavor to cultivate the China-GCC strategic partnership

The GCC has achieved remarkable progress in its integration process, which makes it one of the world's most dynamic regional organizations. Given their geographical locations, GCC countries serve as a hub linking Asia, Africa and Europe. Endowed with rich energy resources, including 30 percent of the oil reserve and 20 percent of the natural gas reserve of the world, GCC countries are an energy tank for world economy. With their pioneering and enterprising spirit, GCC countries provide a fertile ground for high-tech industries. Over the past four decades and more, the GCC has been working hard to build an integral market, an integral economy, and an integral financial system in the region, and has been playing an increasingly important role in regional and international affairs.

Over the years, China and GCC countries have maintained healthy and steady growth in bilateral relations, and carried out wide-ranging, in-depth cooperation with tangible outcomes in all areas. In the past 10 years in particular, China-GCC relations have grown from strength to strength and yielded fruitful results. China has remained the GCC's largest trading partner and largest export market of petrochemical products. In 2021, two-way trade exceeded 230 billion U.S. dollars, and China's import of crude oil from GCC countries topped 200 million tons. The two sides enjoy extensive, in-depth cooperation in traditional areas such as production capacity, infrastructure development, investment and finance. Cooperation in high-tech sectors including 5G communications, new energy, space and digital economy is also gaining momentum. The new signature project of smart manufacturing cooperation and the new landscape of industrial cooperation have added fresh impetus to the development of China and GCC countries.

Looking into the future, China will seize the opportunity of the establishment and consolidation of the China-GCC strategic partnership to cement their traditional friendship and deepen mutual trust. China will continue to firmly support GCC countries in upholding sovereignty, independence, security and stability, and continue to support the GCC in accelerating integration and pursuing diversified development. China will work with the GCC to foster a new pattern of multi-faceted energy cooperation, accelerate new development in financial and investment cooperation, cultivate new highlights in people-to-people exchanges, and explore new areas of innovation cooperation. All this will help increase the convergence of interests between China and GCC countries.

Fourth, sustained efforts to bring the China-Saudi Arabia comprehensive strategic partnership to new heights

Saudi Arabia is a major energy exporter in the world and a member of the G20. As its strategic partner and true friend, China is heartened to see that under the leadership of King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the Saudi people are marching in big strides toward Vision 2030 and making important progress in economic and social reform and diversification. Saudi Arabia's major development initiatives, the Middle East Green Initiative and the Saudi Green Initiative among many others, have captured wide attention. Its stature and influence in global political, economic and energy domains are on the rise. We are proud of our good friend for these accomplishments.

Since the establishment of diplomatic ties, relations between China and Saudi Arabia have maintained robust growth. Most notably, China-Saudi Arabia cooperation has made major headway in the past 10 years. The two sides respect each other's sovereignty and development path, respect each other's history and cultural traditions, support each other in defending national security and stability, and undertake close strategic coordination. Practical cooperation is expanding rapidly. Major projects have been launched one after another, including the Yanbu Aramco Sinopec Refining Company, the Sino-Saudi Gulei Ethylene Complex Project, the Chinese industrial cluster in Jazan Economic City, the Red Sea utilities and infrastructure project, 5G communications, and joint lunar explorations. People-to-people exchanges continue to grow. Chinese language major is now available in four Saudi universities, and optional Chinese language courses are provided in eight middle and primary schools. Hakim & Kong Xiaoxi, the first animated co-production of China and Saudi Arabia, is popular among children, sowing the seed of China-Saudi Arabia friendship in their hearts.

China will take this visit as an opportunity to strengthen its comprehensive strategic partnership with Saudi Arabia. We will continue to give each other understanding and support, and jointly advocate independence and oppose external interference. We will further synergize China's Belt and Road Initiative and Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030, deepen and substantiate practical cooperation in all areas, and increase the convergence of interests and people-to-people connectivity between the two countries. We will strengthen collaboration under multilateral frameworks such as the UN, the G20 and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, jointly practice true multilateralism, and make greater contribution to maintaining peace and stability in the Middle East and promoting development and prosperity of the world.

Last October, the Communist Party of China successfully convened its 20th National Congress, and it is now rallying and leading the Chinese people toward the goal of building a modern socialist country in all respects. As a staunch force for world peace and common development, China will stay committed to providing new opportunities for Arab states and all other countries in the world through its own development, and work with our Arab brothers to carry forward the traditional friendship and create a better future together.

Note Xi's emphasis of cooperation with the goal of establishing shared effort by all developing nations. Canadian writer Matthew Ehret offers another view of Xi's trip, “Xi Jinping’s Visit to Saudi Arabia and the overthrow of Atlanticism.” In comparison, Xi never mentions NATO or the Outlaw US Empire in his letter, preferring instead to refer to “external interference” and the actions they take to disrupt solidarity and development. Ehret provides further descriptions of development projects and looks to the wider region of Southwest Asia that includes Iran.

On June 24, Xi gave a short but detailed speech at a global development conference that merits comparison with his letter to the Arab people. His four main points are now refined and more specific:

Dear Colleagues:

Development is a timeless theme for humanity. In the late 1960s, I worked as a farmer in a small village on the Loess Plateau. There I experienced first-hand the hardships in farming and saw how the local people struggled to make ends meet. Their longing for a better life has stayed in my mind ever since. Half a century later, I revisited the village and found the villagers no longer in want of food or clothing, as evidenced by the happy smiles on their faces.

As an ancient Chinese saying goes, "Only when the granary is full will people learn etiquette; only when people are well-fed and clothed will they know honor and shame." Throughout the years, I have been to cities, towns and villages across China and visited many countries in the world. 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.

Over the years, developing countries have worked unremittingly to explore development paths suited to their national realities and to pursue economic and social development. Such efforts have produced remarkable outcomes. Today, emerging markets and developing countries account for half of the world economy, and notable progress has been made in science and technology, education, social development, culture and many other areas.

We are meeting at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic is eroding decades of gains in global development, the implementation of the UN's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is encountering difficulties, the North-South gap keeps widening, and crises are emerging in food and energy security. Some countries have politicized and marginalized the development issue, built "a small yard with high fences", imposed maximum sanctions, and stoked division and confrontation. At the same time, people in all countries are more keen about pursuing peace, development and cooperation, emerging markets and developing countries are more resolved to seek strength through unity, and the new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation is bringing more opportunities to countries around the world.

This is an age rife with challenges, but it is also an age full of hope. We must get a good grasp of the overarching development trend in the world, firm up confidence, and act in unison and with great motivation to promote global development and foster a development paradigm featuring benefits for all, balance, coordination, inclusiveness, win-win cooperation and common prosperity.

First, we need to jointly build international consensus on promoting development. Only when people all over the world live better lives can prosperity be sustained, security safeguarded and human rights solidly grounded. It is important that we put development front and center on the international agenda, deliver on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and build political consensus to ensure everyone values development and all countries pursue cooperation together.

Second, we need to jointly create an enabling international environment for development. Protectionist moves will boomerang; anyone attempting to form exclusive blocs will end up isolating himself; maximum sanctions serve nobody's interest, and practices of decoupling and supply disruption are neither feasible nor sustainable. It is important that we pursue development in real earnest and promote development in concert, build an open world economy, and shape a global governance system and institutional environment that are more just and equitable.

Third, we need to jointly foster new drivers for global development. Innovation is the primary driving force for development. It is important that we promote scientific, technological and institutional innovation, speed up technology transfer and knowledge sharing, boost the development of modern industries, close the digital divide and accelerate low-carbon transition, with a view to achieving stronger, greener and healthier global development.

Fourth, we need to jointly forge a global development partnership. Only by working together can we accomplish big and great things with a far-reaching impact. Developed countries need to fulfill obligations, developing countries need to deepen cooperation, and the North and the South need to work in the same direction to forge a united, equal, balanced and inclusive global development partnership. In this process, no country or individual should be left behind. It is important that we support the UN in steering and coordinating global development cooperation, and encourage business communities, social groups, the media and think tanks to take part in such cooperation.

Colleagues,

China has always been a member of the big family of developing countries. At last year's UN General Assembly session, I put forth the Global Development Initiative (GDI). China will take pragmatic steps to give continued support to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

— China will allocate more resources for global development cooperation. We will upgrade the South-South Cooperation Assistance Fund to a Global Development and South-South Cooperation Fund, and add U.S.$1 billion to the fund on top of the U.S.$3 billion already committed. We will also increase input to the UN Peace and Development Trust Fund. Such efforts will further support cooperation under the GDI.

— China will work with all sides to advance cooperation in priority areas and mobilize resources for development to deepen global cooperation on poverty reduction and eradication, build capacity for food production and supply, and promote clean energy partnerships; step up innovation, research and development and joint production of vaccines; work on the conservation and sustainable use of land and marine ecology; and raise digital literacy and skills of the public, transform and upgrade the path to industrialization at a faster pace, and enhance digital-era connectivity to inject new impetus into the development of all countries.

— China will set up a platform for experience and knowledge sharing on international development, a global development promotion center and a global knowledge network for development, for the purpose of exchanging governance experience and promoting mutual learning. We will host a global forum on youth development and take part in the launch of a global action plan on youth development, in a bid to pool as much strength as possible for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

As an ancient Chinese adage goes, "With one heart and one mind, we can accomplish everything we aspire for." Let us firm up confidence, stride forward in pursuit of high-quality partnership, and usher in a new era of prosperity and development.

The pandemic and NATO's war on Russia has slowed and complicated the effort to develop. Prior to the above speech, on March 31 the CPC's newspaper People's Daily published the following editorial about the Global Development Initiative that was directed at the global audience, not just developing nations:

The world today is challenged by profound changes and a pandemic both unseen in a century.

The global development process is being severely impacted, and the Human Development Index has been set back for the first time in the recent 30 years. The pandemic has put some developing countries back into poverty and chaos again, and even many people in developed countries are in hot water because of it.

According to the Sustainable Development Goals Report 2021 issued by the UN, 119 to 124 million people were pushed back into extreme poverty in 2020, and there was a big rise in the number of people that couldn't get enough to eat. Inequality within and among nations is also exacerbating as the pandemic ravages the world.

Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed a Global Development Initiative (GDI) when delivering an important speech at the General Debate of the 76th Session of the UN General Assembly on Sept. 21, 2021. He called on the world to stay committed to development as a priority, stay committed to a people-centered approach, stay committed to benefits for all, stay committed to innovation-driven development, stay committed to harmony between man and nature, and stay committed to results-oriented actions.

He also encouraged the world to advance on a priority basis cooperation on poverty alleviation, food security, COVID-19 response and vaccines, development financing, climate change and green development, industrialization, digital economy and connectivity, among other areas.

The GDI is not proposed for a particular moment, event, country or region. It responds to the pressing challenges facing countries, especially developing countries, and is another major initiative proposed by China after the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

By re-prioritizing development, renewing commitments to the Sustainable Development Goals, revitalizing global partnerships, and reactivating development cooperation, China has drawn up a road map for narrowing the North-South gap and addressing development imbalance, and has thereby given a boost to fulfilling the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Besides, the country has also built a powerful synergy for making global development more robust, greener and more balanced, and for building a community with a shared future for mankind.

The GDI is highly consistent with the demands of all parties. It has been actively responded by the UN and nearly 100 countries, and incorporated in the outcome documents of a series of important conferences, including the China-Pacific Island Countries Foreign Ministers' Meeting, the ASEAN-China Special Summit to Commemorate the 30th Anniversary of ASEAN-China Dialogue Relations, the Eighth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, and the Third Ministerial Meeting of the Forum of China and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States.

The Group of Friends of the GDI was launched in January this year at the UN headquarters in New York. Representatives from over 100 countries and 20 international organizations joined the launch, building greater international consensus on implementing the GDI.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the GDI one of great importance in advancing the realization of the UN Sustainable Development Goals for 2030 and addressing the inequality and imbalance in global development.

Erastus Mwencha, former deputy chairperson of the African Union Commission, noted that the GDI is vital for Africa and even the entire world at large, adding that cooperation and dialogue are the best ways to solve global issues. He said everyone should shoulder the responsibility to maintain peace and development of the globe.

From "On the march towards common prosperity, no one will be left behind," to "On the road to the wellbeing of all mankind, no country or nation should be left behind," President Xi has vividly explained the essence of building a community with a shared future for mankind.

People-centered development philosophy is not an abstract concept, or something that's never implemented. Upholding such a philosophy, the GDI aims at enhancing people's welfare and achieving development for all people. Taking the rights to life and development as primary human rights, it promotes cooperation with solidarity, seeks progress through cooperation, and ensures human rights with the benefits deriving from development.

"Facts have shown once again that amidst the raging torrents of a global crisis, countries are not riding separately in some 190 small boats, but are rather all in a giant ship on which our shared destiny hinges," Xi remarked. He also stressed that in the age of economic globalization, the security of all countries is interlinked and has impact on one another. No country can maintain absolute security with its own effort, and no country can achieve stability out of other countries' instability.

The GDI is an initiative facing the entire world. It will forge synergy in priority areas, respond to the needs of all countries, partner with cooperation mechanisms and reach out to partners of all sectors.

It advances practical cooperation in eight major areas, builds synergy for achieving the 17 Sustainable Development Goals as scheduled, and lights up the hope of leapfrog development for developing countries.

Bridging the development divide and revitalizing global development, the trend of peaceful development is unstoppable. From the BRI to the GDI, and from theoretical guidance to comprehensive promotion of practical cooperation, China has always been standing on the right side of history and human progress.

Joining hands to cope with global threats and challenges, and promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind, we'll surely meet a better future.

China through its President Xi Jinping has clearly taken the initiative in its outspokenness on the issues of global development and peace as the prerequisites for humanity's progression and has noted that the artificial division of humanity greatly harms all humans. In the past, these issues were seldom talked about so often on the global stage as confrontation between ideological blocs was deemed more important and one bloc strove to bend International Law to its whims so it could control all other nations. Today, that's being confronted on several fronts by the two leading nations who are utilizing People Centered Development to advance their citizens wellbeing. And as that struggle continues, it's becoming clearer daily what's at stake for humanity. As a result, we see humanity as represented by their nations taking sides—peace, development, shared efforts, and the Rule of Law—not arbitrary rules—and adherence to that Law is what the vast majority of humanity wants. Its desire to see the end of the Age of Plunder is higher than ever before as that possibility moves ever closer to reality. Yes, the world's at a critical juncture, which means people must come together and stand in solidarity to oppose the last vestiges of Colonialism and Plunder and not succumb to the divide and rule efforts that have always been employed to keep people apart. And as people build new bonds they must also build their activity as citizens so they remain in charge of themselves and not ruled by an Oligarchy which is what now plagues the West. And with that in mind, people need to examine the proposed Global Security Initiative which is aimed at making the UN Charter a vibrant reality. However, that requires a maturing of humanity so it rejects what's known as Cold War Mentality, which currently is championed by those few remaining nations hooked on plundering as a way of life.

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