China Propels Global Sustainable Development

By+LIN+MINWANG

IN September 2000， the leaders of 189 countries gathered at the Millennium Summit where they adopted the Millennium Declaration， setting the Millennium Development Goals （MDGs） of eradicating extreme poverty and hunger， achieving universal primary education， promoting gender equality， reducing child mortality， improving maternal health， combating HIV/AIDS， malaria and other diseases， ensuring environmental sustainability and developing a global partnership for development， all by the target date of 2015.

As the MDGs expire this year， the UN has prepared to formulate a post-2015 development plan. On August 2， 2015， 193 UN member states agreed to the document titled Transforming Our World： the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The text features 17 new sustainable development goals， including ending poverty and hunger， ensuring inclusive quality education for all， achieving gender equality， promoting employment， countering climate change and its impacts， conserving and sustainably using the oceans， seas and marine resources， sustainably managing forests， combating desertification， halting and reversing land degradation and halting biodiversity loss， promoting peaceful societies， and revitalizing the global partnership for sustainable development. These world leaders adopted this agenda at the Sustainable Development Summit in September 2015.

In its Millennium Development Goals Report 2014 the UN assesses progress towards implementation of the MDGs. The report indicates that global poverty has been halved ahead of the 2015 timeframe. Ninety percent of children in developing regions now receive primary education， and disparities between boys and girls in enrollment have narrowed. Remarkable progress has also been made in the fight against malaria and tuberculosis， alongside improvements in all health indicators. The likelihood of a child dying before age five has been almost halved over the last two decades， as has the proportion of people who lack access to improved sources of water. Concerted efforts have helped foster hope and expand opportunities for people around the world. Yet more effort is needed to reach all the set targets as global emissions of carbon dioxide continue their upward trend， those in 2011 almost 50 percent above the 1990 level. Millions of hectares of forest are still lost every year， and many species draw closer to extinction. Renewable water resources also become even scarcer.

For 15 years now， China has actively participated in and practiced sustainable development. As the top performer among developing countries in accomplishing the MDGs， Chinas contribution to the achievement of ambitious MDG targets has been crucial.endprint

Growing China a Main Contributor to World Sustainable Development

As the worlds most populous developing country， Chinas sustainable development has been pivotal to the larger worlds achievement of its MDGs. Through unremitting 15-year efforts by its government， China has advanced greatly in eradicating poverty and hunger， achieving universal primary education， promoting gender equality， improving the health and welfare of women and children， enhancing disease control and prevention， and environmental protection. The country has thus excelled in achieving the MDGs.

In the economic development sphere， China has maintained stable， relatively swift growth to become the worlds second-largest economy， its GDP soaring from RMB 10 trillion in 2000 to RMB 63.6 trillion in 2014.

China has set education as a cornerstone of national development and fully instituted nine-year free compulsory education. Since 2008， the net enrollment rate of primary-school-age children has stayed above 99 percent. More and more Chinese have access to better education， the illiteracy rate decreasing from 6.7 percent in 2000 to 4.1 percent in 2014 and the illiteracy rate among middleaged and young adults dropping from 2.8 percent in 2000 to one percent in 2014. The gender gap as regards number of years in education also narrowed from 1.3 years in 2000 to 0.8 in 2014.

In health care， the mortality rate among children under five plummeted from 60 per thousand in 1991 to 12 per thousand in 2013， and the urban-rural disparity in child mortality rates narrowed from 1： 3.4 to 1： 2.4. The maternal mortality rate dropped from 88.8 per 100，000 in 1990 to 23.2 per 100，000 in 2013， and the maternal mortality rate urban-rural imbalance declined from 1：2.2 to 1： 1.1.

With regard to eco-construction， over the past 15 years， in the spirit of its great responsibility to human-kind and future generations， China has gained impressive results in the implementation of large-scale ecological projects. From 2000 to 2013， China planted 60.89 million hectares of forest. Forest coverage grew from 18.21 percent to 21.63 percent and the forest stock volume rose from 12.456 billion cubic meters to 15.137 billion cubic meters. Chinas fruitful tree-planting program has been of immense importance in slowing the loss of global forest resources.

Support for Other Developing CountriesSustainable Development

President Saber Chowdhury of the Inter-Parliamentary Union （IPU） once remarked that China has always championed developing countries and supported the least developed countries （LDCs）. When China stands by an African or Asian nation， it truly wants that country to develop. Chinas part in the whole global agenda is crucial.endprint

As a large and responsible developing country， China has provided assistance to other developing countries to the best of its ability， especially LDCs and low-income countries. Chinas foreign assistance assumes such forms as undertaking complete aid projects， providing goods and materials， conducting technical and human resources development cooperation， dispatching medical teams and volunteers， offering emergency humanitarian aid， and reducing or writting off the debts of recipient countries. Over the past 60-odd years， China has provided RMB 400 billion in assistance to 166 countries and international organizations， and trained more than 12 million professionals of various types for aid-recipient nations.

To meet the special needs of LDCs， as of January 1， 2015 China started to implement zero-tariff on 97 percent of taxable products from LDCs with whom it held diplomatic ties. Also， on six occasions China has announced debt relief for heavily-indebted poor countries and LDCs from mature， interest-free loans， in an amount totaling RMB 30 billion.

Set an Example for Other Developing Countries

As Chinas basic national conditions are similar to those of most developing countries， its development experiences may stimulate new ideas for other developing nations. The measures taken by China to achieve the MDGs are worthy of emulation. The Chinese government considers development as the key to addressing major issues the country faces， and therefore prioritizes development in state governance.

Over the past 15 years， the Chinese government and its citizenry have factored in both their national and international circumstances to enhance their understanding of development. It has propounded such ideas as the scientific outlook on development， building a moderately prosperous society， and creating an eco-friendly society. In recent years， China has included eco-construction into its overall plan for Chinese-style socialism and striven to build a beautiful China.

Chinas government， proceeding from the needs of phased economic and social development， sets explicit goals and tasks and formulates a series of social and economic development plans， known as five-year plans. The government makes full use of its resources to guarantee the implementation of these plans and evaluates governments at various levels based on how they carry them out.

At the same time， the Chinese government guides development by encouraging multilateral cooperation and publicity， forming a mechanism where the government takes the lead， assisted by widespread participation by different social sectors. Public service projects have had a positive impact in helping China realize the MDGs. These projects include Project Hope， which aims to provide funding to help children in poverty-stricken areas return to school and improve educational facilities in rural areas， and the Spring Bud Project， which helps girl dropouts from disadvantaged areas go back to school.endprint

Moreover， the Chinese government is committed to achieving the MDGs through technoloical innovations and applications， and has always implemented the MDGs with an open-minded attitude. Through comprehensive dialogues， broad exchanges and various forms of cooperative mechanisms over the past 15 years， the Chinese government has shared its experiences and lessons with foreign governments， international organizations， enterprises， research and consultative institutions， and civil societal organizations with whom it jointly promotes the realization of the MDGs.

China has made impressive achievements in implementing the MDGs， but the gap between China and developed countries cannot be overlooked. Chinas GDP per capita is still lower than the global average and less than one-fifth of the average level of the developed countries. Based on the poverty line indicator of US$2 a day defined by the World Bank， China still had 250 million poverty-stricken people in 2011. Poverty reduction remains an arduous task. China is still at the stage of fast industrialization and urbanization. Unbalanced and uncoordinated development among different regions and urban and rural areas remains a prominent issue. Generally speaking， China is still a developing country and such status is not likely to change in the near future.endprint