China-Europe-America Think Tank Cooperation Forum

A recording of these remarks can be found on YouTube and Tencent Video

Excellencies,

Distinguished Scholars,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Greetings!

I am pleased to join you, albeit virtually, for the China-Europe-Africa Think Tank Cooperation Forum to deliver remarks on the important topic of global governance.

As the United Nations Development Programme acknowledged in the latest Human Development Report, we live in a world of worry.

Growing challenges and uncertainty are, for the first time, threatening decades of development gains, further delaying the urgent transition to greener, more inclusive economies.

Our cascading and interlinked crises are putting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in grave danger, along with humanity’s very survival.

The 2022 Sustainable Development Goals report notes that the COVID-19 pandemic wiped out more than four years of progress on poverty eradication and pushed 93 million more people into extreme poverty in 2020.

Moreover, a quarter of the global population now lives in conflict affected countries, with 100 million people forcibly displaced worldwide.

Our progress toward realizing the promise of the 2030 Agenda, to leave no one behind, has indeed stalled.

As United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said in his remarks to the Economic and Social Council, “we need to rescue the Sustainable Development Goals and get them back on track”.

Dear friends,

The United Nations is committed to its Three Pillars, peace and security, human rights, and development, to offering global solutions to global challenges in order to build back better in a more equal and sustainable world.

But doing so requires the entire community of nations to redouble its efforts.

China, as the world’s second largest economy, will play a critical role in this endeavour. For example, it has been my high priority to facilitate a strong and balanced development partnership between China and Africa, notably through support in the implementation of commitments made under the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

That is precisely why the United Nations family in China has proposed to initiate an International Center of Excellence for Applied Sustainable Development Solutions in Africa, to promote both South- South and Triangular Cooperation, between China, countries in Africa and the Global North, all as key partners.

Here, we welcome the Global Development Initiative and its proposed alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals, including in the areas of poverty eradication, food security, health, financing for development, climate action, industrialization, digital economy, and connectivity.

We hope to support the Government in integrating other critical components of the Sustainable Development Goals framework within the Global Development Initiative.

Both the United Nations in China and the Government of China have high expectations for the Global Development Initiative to accelerate global progress on the Sustainable Development Goals.

Still, both sides need to recognize the work that must be done to meet these expectations and achieve its potential.

The United Nations is prepared to work with China in equipping the Global Development Initiative to pursue its priorities, to ensure alignment with recognized international norms and standards, in cooperation with other Member States.  

Ladies and gentlemen, we are in a race to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. This is the moment for us to come together and collaborate to create the change we want. 

I wish you productive deliberations at today’s forum. Thank you.