Full text: The Right to Development: China's Philosophy, Practice and Contribution(13)

Furthering cooperation fordevelopment. China adheres to the principle of maintainingintegrity and pursuing interests while giving priority tointegrity, strives to improve the development capacity of allcountries and the international development environment,partnership and coordination mechanisms for internationaldevelopment cooperation to realize the rights of all people todevelopment. China propels inclusive and mutually-beneficialdevelopment, while participating in global economic governance.Regarding North-South economic cooperation as the main focus, Chinacontinues to expand South-South, tripartite, regional economiccooperation, and cooperation with emerging economies and, at thesame time, explore more effective means of win-win cooperation. Torealize common development the Chinese government endeavors toinvolve more countries and regions in the Belt and Road Initiative,relying on existing bilateral and multilateral mechanisms such asthe Shanghai Cooperation Organization, ASEAN Plus China (10+1)Summit, ASEAN Plus China, Japan and the ROK (10+3) Summit, EastAsia Summit, China-Japan-ROK Cooperation, APEC, Asia-EuropeMeeting, Asia Cooperation Dialogue, Conference on Interaction andConfidence-Building Measures in Asia, China-Arab States CooperationForum, China-Gulf Cooperation Council Strategic Dialogue, GreaterMekong Subregion Economic Cooperation Program, and Central AsiaRegional Economic Cooperation. China has established the Silk RoadFund, initiated the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and setup the Lancang-Mekong River cooperation mechanism, in order toprovide financing support for the Belt and Road countries tocoordinate programs on infrastructure, resource development, andindustrial and financial cooperation.

Increasing development aid. Overthe past 60 years China has provided approximately RMB400 billionin aid to 166 countries and international organizations. It hastrained more than 12 million personnel from developing countries,and dispatched over 600,000 people to aid development in othercountries. Seven hundred people have given their lives in thecourse of these programs. Since 2008, China has been the largestexport market of the LDCs, and absorbed about 23 percent of theirexports. To improve economic growth and standards of living in thedeveloping countries, China will set up a South-South CooperationFund, increase its investment in the LDCs, write off certaincountries' debts, establish an International Development KnowledgeCenter and further the Belt and Road Initiative. In the coming fiveyears China will implement six "One Hundred Programs" targetingdeveloping countries - 100 poverty reduction programs, 100agricultural cooperation programs, 100 trade aid programs, 100eco-protection and climate change programs, 100 hospitals andclinics, and 100 schools and vocational training centers. Onehundred and twenty thousand training opportunities and 150,000scholarships will be made available to developing countries inChina, and 500,000 vocational technical personnel will be trained.China will set up a South-South Cooperation and DevelopmentAcademy, and give the World Health Organization US$2 million incash aid.

Providing special treatment. China,as a developing country, is an advocate for a number of traderights based on the principle of "Special and differentialtreatment," but not be obliged to provide the same treatment.However, in recent years, China has begun to provide "Special anddifferential treatment" to other developing countries, focusing onprotecting the right to development of the LDCs. In 2002, China andthe Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) signed theFramework Agreement on China-ASEAN Comprehensive EconomicCooperation, offering special and differential treatment withflexibility to new ASEAN member states such as Cambodia, Lao PDR,Myanmar and Viet Nam. In 2006, China joined the Amendment to theFirst Agreement on Trade Negotiations Among Developing MemberCountries of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and thePacific. China's General Administration of Customs has issued threedocuments which have extended the range of countries enjoying itsspecial preferential tariff from African countries to 40 LDCsrecognized by the United Nations.

Improving the developmentenvironment. China joins other countries in safeguardinginternational peace, opposes all forms of terrorism, and supportsinternational and regional cooperation in fighting terrorism, inorder to create an environment of peace and harmony that promotesdevelopment and thereby consolidates peace. In recent years, Chinahas offered solutions to regional flashpoints: involving itself inthe Iran nuclear talks; mediating for national reconciliation inSouth Sudan; proposing a four-step framework for politicalsettlement of the Syrian issue; facilitating the peace talksbetween the Afghan government and the Taliban; promoting consensuson resuming the six-party talks on the nuclear issue on the KoreanPeninsula. To date, China has sent 33,000 military, police andcivilian personnel to join UN peacekeeping missions. Currentlythere are 2,600-plus Chinese peacekeeping personnel involved in 10UN peacekeeping operations, making China the most active permanentmember of the UN Security Council in terms of supplyingpeacekeeping personnel. In order to support and improvepeacekeeping operations, China will join the new UN peacekeepingstandby mechanism, take the lead in establishing regularpeacekeeping police force units, and organize peacekeeping standbyforces. In the coming five years China will train 2,000peacekeeping personnel for other countries, launch 10 demining aidprograms, provide US$100 million of non-reimbursable military aidto the African Union, and allocate part of the China-UN Peace andDevelopment Fund to support UN peacekeeping operations.

Conclusion

In the pursuit of development andtheir right to development, the Chinese people have made strenuousefforts and significant achievements. To promote common developmentand to build a community with shared future, China has madeunremitting efforts and played an important role. It will always bea defender of humanity's right to development, and a force topropel development and progress throughout the world.

There will always be room forimprovement in human rights, and the quest to improve people'sright to development is always underway. As the world's largestdeveloping country China faces daunting challenges, characterizedby pressing problems such as unbalanced, uncoordinated, andunsustainable development. To achieve a higher level of developmentand better protect the people's right to development, China needsto maintain its efforts. Meeting the people's growing material andcultural needs and giving everyone access to sound development arestill the primary tasks of the CPC in its governance of thecountry.

The Chinese people are working hardto achieve the Two Centenary Goals and the Chinese Dream of thegreat rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. With the realization ofthese goals, China will make a historic and unprecedented leap, andthe Chinese people's right to development will be furtherprotected.

At the UN Sustainable DevelopmentSummit in September 2015, Chinese President Xi Jinping called uponall nations to mark a new starting point with the adoption of 2030Agenda for Sustainable Development, and unite to chart a path ofdevelopment that is fair, open, comprehensive, and innovative.China will continue to work with the international community,strengthen cooperation, promote exchanges of experience, and makeits due contribution to further increase the level of developmentof all peoples of the world and build a community with sharedfuture for mankind. Endi