Accelerating progress towards the 2030 Agenda: China’s Progress, Challenges, and Path Forward

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

Excellency, Mr. Zhao Fengtao, Vice Chairman of China International Development Corporation Agency,

Dr. Henry Wang, President of the Center for China and Globalization,

Ambassadors, my colleagues from the United Nations family,

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Perhaps, in 2023, we are looking at the most convergent crises at multiple levels across the world. We are still not out of a health crisis. We are in the midst of an existential crisis with the climate. We have got 25 ongoing conflicts across the world. We have rising inequalities, and then we are encountered with the war in Ukraine, with the food, fuel, and financial crises.

Now, all these interlocking crises, essentially what they have done is put the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) completely off track. And that is why the Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN) has called for Member States to come together on the 18th and 19th of September, to see what we could do to rescue the SDGs. Rescuing the SDGs requires, first and foremost, political will. With the absence of political will, try as much as we want with all the policies in place, and all the best intentions in place, it is not going to happen. And therefore, the Secretary-General is challenging global leadership across the world to say, what is it that we could do to rescue the SDGs? Let me quote from what he has said. He said that we are at a critical juncture in whether we achieve the ambition of the 2030 Agenda. And we need the SDG Summit to send a clear message from world leaders through a strong political declaration, to deliver transformative actions and increased national commitments to sustainable development.

China is not immune from the shocks of the interlocking crises. A health pandemic in one part of the world can easily envelop the entire world. A sandstorm erupting from Mongolia can easily envelop all of Beijing. We have seen weather phenomena that we have never experienced in China, in the US, or in Europe. Simultaneously, we have seen floods across Greece, Libya, and Turkey. Unprecedented weather events. They are already talking about close to 10,000 people who may have died most recently in Libya. A combination of effects is basically derailing human development and our entire map.

Here, as the UN family, we work and serve in a country where we were established. Our presence was established here in 1979. We have been part of this country's transformation. At one time in 1979, when China's per capita GDP was a mere hundred and eighty dollars, the United Nations was a net aid provider to the country, bringing in ideas, financing, methods, and instruments, on how to transform their economy with the economy had been opened up. In a span of four decades, that is just one generation, they did lift over 770 million people out of poverty.

On a lot of issues around food security, with 9% of the world's arable land, they feed one-fifth of the world's population. Africa has 60% of the world's arable land. Yet, in Africa, they still have to import US$300 billion for their food. Important lessons that can be shared. This is where we are committed as the United Nations family to share the best practices, knowledge, and ideas that can go from China into the rural southern, particularly in Africa, where the future is. By 2050, there will be 2.5 billion people, of which 890 million will be below the age of 40. It is where the future of consumption and production is going to happen. So thrive not just for China, but for the entire world, to look at Africa and invest in Africa now.

In the space of public health, in the space of education, and in the space of gender, there are multiple areas in that China has made great progress. A statistic of interest to you: there are 240 women that are billionaires in the world. 120 are Chinese. In the space of big data, technology, and innovation, they have gone into cutting-edge spheres of AI, quantum computing, semiconductors, fintech and biotech. It is transformation. But there is still a lot to be done. China still has many miles left to complete the SDGs. It still has to deal with issues of inequality. Nearly 350 million migrant workers, and urban to rural inequalities.

This is where the United Nations family has a cooperation framework with China to make sure that around the three pillars, around which the cooperation framework is based, people and prosperity, the planet, and partnership, we will do everything possible to make sure that China comes out as a best in class example of the achievement of the SDGs. At the same time, use our knowledge to build more South-South cooperation and more North-South collaboration, because, ultimately, it is about resurrecting the spirit of multilateralism. And it is that multilateralism that allows us, our collective humanity will allow us not only to overcome the current challenges that we confront, but also in the race towards achieving, not just the SDGs, but a race to achieving more solidarity, more networked community of nations, and ultimately more compassion.

Thank you very much.