Global Development Initiative aims to propel shared development of world

As a major country in the world, China has both the capability and the willingness to contribute to global development. The Global Development Initiative is a public good offered to the world with the aim of helping advance global development and fulfill the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. It was presented as a timely response to the development deficit that had become increasingly evident.

Proposed by President Xi Jinping during the 76th Session of the UN General Assembly in September 2021, the initiative places development at the center of the global macro-policy framework, and seeks to help developing countries make shared progress. Upon its unveiling, it immediately received a positive response from the UN, other international organizations and many countries, as it addresses the urgent needs of people around the world for peace, development and cooperation.

The international community faces major challenges in implementing the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, as the global development deficit continues to worsen.

Development issues have not received the attention they deserve. Unilateralism and protectionism are on the rise, with some countries erecting barriers and pushing for “decoupling”, leading to the disruption of global industry and supply chains. All these factors, compounded by geopolitical conflicts, climate change, and energy and food crises, undermine the interests of countries — especially developing ones — making it even more difficult to achieve the UN 2030 targets.

Having accumulated development experience in its effort to eradicate abject rural poverty, China put forward the initiative to promote global development.

Nearly five years have passed, and the initiative has made progress in its transition from concept to practice. It has now received the support and participation of more than 130 countries and international organizations, with more than 80 countries joining the Group of Friends of the GDI. The group works to advance the initiative’s action-oriented, people-centered approach to accelerate the implementation of the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals through policy dialogue, experience sharing and practical cooperation.

The initiative has mobilized over $23 billion to support the development of the Global South, and launched more than 1,800 cooperation projects. It has also provided training for more than 200,000 personnel from developing countries in various fields. All this has contributed to the economic and social progress of emerging market economies.

To review the initiative’s achievements and further consolidate international consensus, a high-level meeting on the Global Development Initiative held in Beijing on Tuesday aimed to help translate cooperative commitments into concrete actions that will more effectively benefit people in developing countries over the next five years.

In the face of a volatile international landscape, solidarity and cooperation are the only viable choices. In response to the global aspiration for peace and development, China will continue to uphold peaceful development, foster an open environment for sustainable growth, and ensure that the benefits of development reach more people.

All like-minded countries are invited to seize the opportunities presented by China’s 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30), share in the development dividends brought by Chinese modernization, and jointly explore new avenues for global development.

Over the past five years, the Global Development Initiative has served as both a road map for bridging the North-South divide and addressing development imbalances and as an “accelerator” for advancing the UN 2030 Agenda.

China stands ready to work with all parties by leveraging the projects related to the Global Development Initiative as platforms to pool broad development resources, build a solid foundation for shared progress, and foster an inclusive environment for growth, contributing to the building of a community with a shared future for humanity.

[Abridged]

Editorial, China Daily