Jack Ma is the founder and chairman of Alibaba Group, an internationally renowned business leader and philanthropist. But you may not know that Ma is also a senior United Nations official with a red UN pass. This is the highest level pass of the United Nations and a "universal passport".
Ma's "passport" became a hot topic on social media. According to reports, this passport can be visa-free for 220 countries, surprising and curious many people. So, how powerful is Jack Ma's "passport"? How does it achieve visa-free access to 220 countries?
1. What is Jack Ma's "passport"
Jack Ma's "passport" is not actually a passport in the true sense, but a "World Travel Talent Card" issued by the United Nations World Tourism Organization. This card is designed to encourage tourism and provide convenience for travel enthusiasts. Holders can enjoy free or discounted services such as air tickets, accommodation, transportation and meals, and can enter more than 200 countries and territories without the need for a visa.
Only three of the non-governmental personnel in the Chinese community have this "passport" of the United Nations, except for Jack Ma, the other two are the four kings Liming and the international superstar Jet Li. Jack Ma established the "Jack Ma Foundation" in 2015 to build a better world. This foundation works with the United Nations to achieve the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals.
At the 2015 United Nations Development Summit, Ma delivered a speech in which he called on global leaders to strengthen cooperation to jointly advance the goals of sustainable development. In addition, Ma Yun has played an active role in UNESCO.
He became a member of the Digital Advisory Group, which aims to help advance digital education and teaching. Jack Ma also delivered a speech at the Global Think Tank Summit held by the United Nations to discuss the opportunities and challenges of the digital age.
ii. United Nations laissez-passer
The United Nations laissez-passer is divided into red and blue, and the red laissez-passer is issued only to high-level officials, such as the Secretary-General, Under-Secretary-General, Assistant Secretary-General, etc., who enjoy much higher privileges than the blue pass. The red pass can be visa-free to 224 countries and regions around the world, while the blue pass can only be signed to 140 countries and regions. The red pass is not only for the person, but also for the family.
What is the UN laissez-passer? What special functions does it have? Under the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations, the United Nations laissez-passer is a special travel document issued by the United Nations to facilitate the worldwide mission of its officials and experts, and is authorized only by the United Nations and the International Labour Organization.
It can be used like a regular passport and provides more convenience for international passage. Licensees enjoy diplomatic exemptions and visa-free access in countries of which they do not belong to their nationality, can pass fast VIP lanes and do not need to go through security checks. So, how did Jack Ma get the Red UN Pass?
This starts in 2016, when Ma was invited by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development to serve as the agency's special adviser on youth entrepreneurship and small businesses, the first time such a special adviser has been hired since its inception in 1964. The status of this Special Adviser is not a false name, it has a great deal of power, equivalent to a core member of the United Nations, and the rank is equivalent to that of assistant to the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
As a special advisor, Jack Ma's main responsibility is to provide entrepreneurial guidance, financial support, technical training and other services to small and medium-sized enterprises and young people around the world to help them achieve the SDGs. In order to allow Ma Yun to better help small and medium-sized enterprises and help young people around the world, the United Nations issued him a red United Nations pass.
Jack Ma is not only a senior advisor, he is also an advocate for the United Nations SDGs and co-chair of the United Nations High-Level Working Group on Digital Cooperation. Through Alibaba Group and the charitable foundation he established, Jack Ma is also committed to education, environmental protection, women's rights and public health.
Ma's UN pass is a recognition of his achievements and influence in business and society, as well as his expectation and trust in driving global trade, development and sustainability. Ma Yun said that he will use this platform to provide more opportunities and support for small and medium-sized enterprises and young people to contribute to the achievement of the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.
III. Conclusion
Jack Ma uses his skills and capital to build a global and sustainable future. His vision was to break poverty and provide opportunities so that everyone could achieve their dreams, and his efforts were recognized by the United Nations.
In the future, we can expect the cooperation between Jack Ma and the United Nations to continue to develop. By promoting digitalization and sustainability on a global scale, we can collectively build a more prosperous, equitable and sustainable world environment.