National Image Survey: China a Contributor to Global Development

President of the Academy of Contemporary China and World Studies Mr Yu Yunquan releases the major findings of the 2018 China National Image Global Survey at the 6th Seminar on International Communication in Yinchuan today. [Photo by Lun Xiaoxuan/China.org.cn]

Sixty-two percent of people who responded to the 2018 China National Image Global Survey viewed the nation as “a major Oriental country with a rich history and full of charm.”

Developing countries tended to have a more favorable view of the country than developed ones. Sixty percent of respondents from developing countries recognized China’s contribution to global development, which was an increase of 12 percent compared with the previous survey.

The Academy of Contemporary China and World Studies (ACCWS) released the results of the survey at the 6th Seminar on International Communication in Yinchuan, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region today.

They indicated that China’s overall image is steadily improving. The country’s performance in domestic and foreign affairs is being better appreciated, and its domestic governance is attracting better recognition.

China scored 6.22 on a 10-point scale that was used to measure its overall image, which is the same score that it received on the previous survey. It was the second highest-ranking nation in the world in terms of influence on global affairs.

China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is gaining more attention as a result of its positive impact on regional and global economics. Twenty percent of overseas respondents have heard of the BRI. The five countries with the highest percentage of respondents who were aware of it were India (50 percent), Japan (43 percent), Italy (40 percent), South Korea (30 percent) and Russia (30 percent).

Nearly 40 percent of international respondents agreed with the statement that “China is becoming the biggest trading partner of more and more countries.”

The nation’s participation in global governance was viewed positively by people in other countries related to areas such as science and technology (63 percent), the economy (60 percent) and culture (53 percent).

China’s tech companies are enjoying increasing popularity internationally. Lenovo, Huawei, and Alibaba remained the three best-known Chinese brands among the survey’s international respondents.

Citizens from 22 countries were interviewed for the survey. They live in every major inhabited continent and region in the world, including Asia (China, Japan, South Korea, India, Turkey, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia), Europe (the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Russia, Spain, and the Netherlands), North America (the US, Canada and Mexico), South America (Brazil, Argentina and Chile), Africa (South Africa) and Oceania (Australia). The ACCWS, Kantar Millward Brown, and Lightspeed jointly conducted the survey and interviewed 500 respondents from each country, for a total of 11,000.

The survey was conducted via an online questionnaire and adhered to strict international standards. People between 18 to 65 years of age were surveyed to ensure that accurate views were obtained.

President of the Academy of Contemporary China and World Studies Mr Yu Yunquan stated: “We are in a significant period in the relationship between China and the rest of the world and the shaping of China’s national image. It is essential that the country is understood in an accurate manner.”