With an operating mileage of 36,000 kilometers, accounting for more than two-thirds of the world's total high-speed rail mileage, high-speed rail is undoubtedly a business card for China's development. High-speed rail lines are like traction ropes to promote the economic development of the areas along the way, so that many areas out of poverty. For example, Jinzhai County, Anhui Province, China, relies on high-speed rail to develop tourism, and in April this year announced its withdrawal from the list of poverty-stricken counties, becoming a microcosm of China's poverty reduction achievements.
As the largest developing country, the "poverty reduction miracle" created by China is itself a great contribution to the global poverty reduction cause. According to the World Bank, China's achievements in poverty reduction contribute more than 70% to the world's poverty reduction cause. From 2012 to the end of 2019, in just over seven years, China's poverty population decreased by more than 90 million, and the incidence of poverty dropped from 10.2% to 0.6%. After completing the goal of comprehensive poverty alleviation this year, China will achieve the poverty reduction target of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development 10 years ahead of schedule. UN Secretary-General António Guterres commented: "In the past 10 years, China has been the country that has made the greatest contribution to global poverty reduction. ”
At present, the COVID-19 pandemic poses a huge challenge to global poverty reduction actions. The 2020 Sustainable Development Goals Report released by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs in July predicts that 71 million people worldwide will return to extreme poverty this year. The report also notes that the Human Development Index will set back for the first time in 30 years. Recently, at the summit commemorating the 75th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations, China's supreme leader Xi Jinping once again issued a call to put development issues in a prominent position in the global macro framework, thus pointing out the direction for the world to tide over the crisis. At the recent webinar on "The United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals and China's Experience in Poverty Reduction", all parties said that China's experience in poverty reduction is worth learning. Groble, a representative of south Africa's Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation, pointed out that China has played a vital role in Africa's development, and "Africa appreciates China's development model and has learned a lot from China." Santiago Bustro, a researcher at the Center for China-Argentina Studies at the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina, believes that China's remarkable achievements in the field of poverty reduction are inseparable from achieving steady economic growth in combination with its own development path.
Indeed, development is the key to China's solution to poverty. Since the founding of New China, especially after the reform and opening up, the rapid development of China's economy has lifted 850 million people out of poverty and created the largest, longest-lasting and most populous poverty reduction miracle in human history. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, China's top leaders have focused on the people's yearning for a better life and led the Chinese people to launch an all-round battle against poverty. Even under the epidemic, China's determination and confidence in achieving the goal of poverty alleviation have not wavered.
In April this year, Xi Jinping visited Shaanxi to focus on the theme of poverty alleviation, pointed out the direction and path for industrial poverty alleviation, employment poverty alleviation, health poverty alleviation, education poverty alleviation and other measures, and conveyed a clear signal that China will complete the task of poverty alleviation on schedule. Facts have proved that in the face of the "plus test" of the new crown pneumonia epidemic, a series of countermeasures taken by China have been effective. By the end of April, the resumption rate of China's leading poverty alleviation enterprises exceeded 97%, and from January to August, China's online retail sales increased by 9.5% year-on-year, many of which were agricultural products from poor areas. They have entered the list of residents' consumption through live streaming and e-commerce platforms, which has become a new bright spot in poverty reduction under the epidemic. As Stephen Perry, president of the British 48 Group Club, lamented, "Achieving the goal of poverty alleviation is deeply rooted in the soul of China's leaders and Chinese people."
As a responsible major country, while promoting its own poverty reduction, China has also actively helped other countries to get out of poverty through personnel exchanges, cooperative research and technical assistance. From the planting project in Tanzania, to the demonstration comprehensive village development project in three Southeast Asian countries, to the Fiji fungus grass project under the China-United Nations Peace and Development Fund, and the poverty reduction exchange and training program between China and Latin American countries, there are vivid examples of China helping other developing countries get rid of poverty.
Since the beginning of this year, when the poverty reduction work of various countries has been hit by the epidemic, China has actively spoken out for developing countries on international occasions, advocating "development priority", strengthening South-South cooperation, and implementing the G20 Debt Relief Initiative. In June, As a founding member, China joined the United Nations Alliance for the Eradication of Poverty, proposing to help countries along the Belt and Road initiative increase employment and improve people's livelihood. According to a World Bank study, the Belt and Road Initiative will lift some 7.6 million people out of extreme poverty and 32 million out of moderate poverty in countries. Charles Onunaiju, director of the Nigerian Center for China Studies, pointed out that deep participation in the joint construction of the "Belt and Road" is of great significance to African countries to achieve economic recovery and sustainable development in the post-epidemic era. Jeffrey Sachs, chairman of the Leadership Committee of the United Nations Sustainable Development Action Network and director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University in the United States, believes that China has made important contributions to promoting global sustainable development, and winning the battle against poverty is of greater world significance.
At present, the COVID-19 epidemic is still spreading around the world, and the uncertainty of achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals for 2030 is increasing. Only by making greater efforts can the world continue to move forward towards the goal of eradicating poverty. Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon pointed out that "China's role is indispensable in this process." When the world's development encounters a bleak moment, China will continue to participate in international cooperation with its own development and deep participation, contribute to the global poverty alleviation cause, illuminate the direction of the world's progress, and let the fruits of development benefit everyone. (International Sharp Review Commentator)