As China prepares to host the eagerly awaited third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF) this upcoming week, it marks a decade since the inception of its ambitious global infrastructure development strategy, a linchpin of its foreign policy. President Xi Jinping's "Major Country Diplomacy" strategy places the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) at the forefront, propelling China into a greater leadership role on the world stage commensurate with its growing power and status.
The BRI's global appeal is evident as representatives from over 130 countries and 30 international organisations are set to gather for the BRF from October 17 to 18 in Beijing. This forum, described by Chinese officials as one of this year's most significant multilateral diplomatic events, aims to highlight the remarkable accomplishments in the past decade of joint BRI construction and provide a crucial platform for discussions on high-quality cooperation within the initiative.
The BRF, in its third iteration, has evolved into a vital multilateral platform where countries and regions participating in the joint construction of the BRI take stock of progress and chart the course for future cooperation. The theme, "High-quality Belt and Road Cooperation: Together for Common Development and Prosperity," highlights the commitment to inclusive development and collaboration. In a world grappling with a plethora of geopolitical and economic challenges, it is poised to inject a sense of certainty into an uncertain global landscape and offer fresh momentum for global development. The forum is expected to yield substantial outcomes, strengthening international cooperation, uniting countries around a shared vision, and showcasing China's steadfast commitment to global cooperation and open engagement.
Decade of development
Since it was announced by President Xi in 2013, the BRI has played a pivotal role in promoting economic integration, fostering interconnected development, and delivering benefits to a wide range of nations. It has set the stage for mutual benefit, win-win scenarios, prosperity, and development in an era marked by turbulence and change.
Throughout the past decade, the BRI has served as a beacon of development, offering renewed impetus for global progress. Focusing on development that best serves the common interests of all nations, it has provided an inclusive platform that promotes the collective prosperity of China’s global partners. Notably, between 2013 and 2022, the total value of China's trade in goods with key Belt and Road partner countries surged at an average annual rate of 8.6 per cent, with two-way investments exceeding $270 billion. Newly signed contracts for projects have reached over $1.2 trillion, resulting in numerous infrastructure endeavours, including roads, bridges, and ports, further enhancing land, maritime, air, and cyberspace connectivity.
Belt and Road cooperation has effectively harmonised development strategies and practical needs among its partners, facilitating the transformation of partner countries' advantages into tangible development outcomes. Over the past decade, overseas cooperative industrial parks like the Thailand-China Rayong Industrial Zone and Ethiopia's Eastern Industry Zone have thrived, acting as catalysts for local industrialisation and modernisation. The World Bank estimates that by 2030, Belt and Road cooperation will annually generate a benefit of $1.6 trillion for the world, contributing to 1.3 per cent of global GDP and infusing substantial momentum into global development.
Over the past decade, the BRI has also aided in lifting nearly 40 million people out of poverty, paving the way for opportunities and prosperity for local populations. Numerous ‘small yet impactful’ livelihood programmes, including schools, hospitals, and stadiums, have been established, enhancing the quality of life and fostering a sense of happiness and well-being. The China-Europe Railway Express has performed over 15,000 freight services, acting as a lifeline by delivering medical supplies during the pandemic. Earlier this year, the China-aided African Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) headquarters, boasting modern office facilities and state-of-the-art laboratories, was successfully inaugurated. In response to the global food crisis, China and its BRI partners have actively engaged in agricultural cooperation, disseminating practical technologies such as hybrid rice and Juncao, contributing to bolstering food security for local communities.
With the implementation of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development facing obstacles, nations across the globe are expressing a growing desire for development and cooperation. Many developing countries have seized the opportunity presented by the BRI, opening up horizons for industrial enhancements, energy transformation, and innovative development in these countries. Under the framework of Belt and Road cooperation, China has energetically conducted talent exchange activities and research collaborations. Through initiatives like the Luban Workshops, China has established vocational workshops in more than 20 countries, providing vocational and technical training for local youth and thereby bolstering the internal growth engines of these nations.
Trailblazer for innovation
Guided by innovative ideas, Belt and Road cooperation has harnessed resources from various parties, injecting substantial momentum into the development of partner countries and delivering tangible benefits to the people. It has moved away from the zero-sum mentality prevalent in Western-led models of international cooperation dominated by donors, ushering in a new vision for global collaboration. As British commentator Martin Jacques noted, the BRI is entirely novel and, in terms of its global impact, bold and unprecedented in its character and conception.
From facilitating people-to-people exchanges in science and technology to jointly establishing laboratories, and from strengthening cooperation on science and technology parks to creating technology transfer centres, the vision of a collaborative innovation community with shared development philosophies, unobstructed flow of production factors, networked technology facilities, interconnected innovation chains, and active people-to-people exchanges is becoming a reality. In the joint water-conserving irrigation laboratory established by China and Egypt, water can be directed to the crop roots through underground seeping pipes with a simple tap on a phone. This advanced water-saving irrigation system from China offers a practical solution to the challenges of high temperatures, drought, and water scarcity that affect Egypt's agriculture. Belt and Road cooperation is also instrumental in consolidating innovation resources from all participants. China and Portugal, despite their different climates and geographical locations, have bolstered their innovation cooperation. Initiatives such as the Joint International Research Laboratory of Marine Biology launched in 2017 and the Belt and Road Joint Laboratory on Space and Sea Technology Advanced Research inaugurated in 2021 have not only enabled information sharing between the two countries but have also promoted the complementary nature of their scientific research capabilities, resulting in a multiplying effect.
Through Belt and Road cooperation, China has not only integrated itself into the global scientific and technological innovation network but has also extended the benefits of innovation to more countries and people. China has engaged in extensive cooperation with partner countries in areas like smart cities, mobile payments, cross-border e-commerce, and other aspects of the digital economy. It has supported these countries in establishing and enhancing technology markets. China has also established the Technology Transfer South-South Cooperation Centre in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme, facilitating cooperation among higher education institutions and research organizations. This has aided partner countries in nurturing future innovators. As Bill Gates observed, China possesses a unique blend of expertise and experience, combined with substantial investments in scientific and technological innovation, enabling it to make distinctive contributions by sharing its technologies and insights.
A green Silk Road
A harmonious ecosystem is crucial for the prosperity of civilisation. For millennia, Chinese culture has valued the idea of living in harmony with nature. While advancing green development domestically, China has also extended its green development principles and experiences to the Belt and Road cooperation. In 2019, during the second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, China emphasised that green would be a defining aspect of the BRI.
In building a green Silk Road, China has not only expressed its commitment but has taken concrete actions. As the world's largest market and equipment manufacturer in the clean energy sector, China has engaged in green energy cooperation with over 100 countries and regions. In Belt and Road partner countries, Chinese investments in green and low-carbon energy have surpassed those in traditional energy sources. This shift promotes a better balance between socio-economic development and environmental protection, creating green development opportunities for participating countries and providing benefits to local communities.
In Pakistan's Punjab province, solar farms double as spaces for cultivating plants and fruits under the solar panels. Along Kenya's Mombasa-Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway, railroad bridges feature large passages allowing tall animals like giraffes to cross with ease. In Senegal, China is actively involved in Dakar's wastewater treatment project, improving water quality in the area and revitalising the beachfront environment, benefiting hundreds of thousands of residents. In Ghana, the Sunon Asogli Power Plant, supported by China, has been completed and supplies 25 per cent of Ghana's electricity demand, addressing local electricity shortages with clean and green energy. In Kazakhstan, projects like the Zhanatas Wind Power Station and the Turgusun hydropower station, delivered with the participation of Chinese enterprises, have significantly advanced the country's green and low-carbon development. These scenes not only showcase tangible outcomes from the BRI but also underscore how Belt and Road cooperation is turning the vision of green development into reality through concrete actions.
To date, China has signed over 50 cooperation agreements related to eco-environmental protection and has jointly launched the Initiative for Belt and Road Partnership on Green Development with 31 partner countries and the Belt and Road Initiative Energy Partnership with 32 partner countries. The Belt and Road Initiative International Green Development Coalition now includes more than 100 partner institutions, and the Green Silk Road Envoys Programme has trained over 3,000 green development professionals from 120-plus partner countries. A decade of dedicated effort has strengthened the consensus among BRI participants on the importance of green development, enabling China to build closer partnerships for green development with partner countries.
In the future, guided by the vision of green development and supported by various cooperation platforms, this collective endeavour to build a green Silk Road will undoubtedly yield more benefits for people worldwide and contribute to the creation of a harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature.
A world of mutual understanding
Recognising diversity as a basic feature of the world, BRI calls for treating all civilisations in an equal and inclusive manner, respecting the systems and beliefs of all countries, and promoting understanding and trust among different civilisations. Rejecting the outdated Cold War mentality, it represents a big step forward in humanity’s approach to civilisation, and is garnering growing support globally. "The BRI is open and inclusive and it welcomes cooperation with similar arrangements from around the world. This is a global initiative; whatever they propose, including the US and the EU, we should cooperate with them," He Weiwen, senior fellow of the Centre for China and Globalisation, has stated.
Over the past decade, Belt and Road partner countries have carried out diverse people-to-people exchanges and cooperation, which have become bridges for mutual cultural appreciation. Initiatives such as the Silk Road International League of Theatres, the International Alliance of Museums of the Silk Road, the Silk Road International Arts Festival, the Silk Road International Library Alliance, and the Silk Road International Gallery Alliance attracted close to 100 countries and international organisations by the end of 2022. Luban Workshop, a vocational training programme, is today being conducted in more than 20 Asian, African, and European countries to help cultivate a pool of high-calibre technical personnel for the local community. Chinese and foreign archaeologists are working together to explore the cultural relics of the ancient Silk Road and renew the exchanges along the Silk Road with modern-day cultural interactions. The BRI has built a platform for dialogue among civilizations, where the flowers of different civilizations bloom and shine together.
As once-in-a-century changes continue to unfold globally, humanity is confronted with multiple challenges and crises. The resurgence of anachronistic mentalities trumpeting the superiority of certain civilisations is posing a serious threat to world peace, stability, development, and progress. At a time when all countries are interconnected with a shared future, inclusiveness, coexistence, interaction, and mutual learning among civilisations play an irreplaceable role in advancing the modernization of human society.
Unwavering confidence in the BRI
Despite some attempts by Western officials and media to discredit the BRI's achievements, the growing enthusiasm and expectations from countries, regions, and international institutions for the BRF highlight the widespread popularity and unwavering confidence in the BRI. "The forum is not just a forum; it's a way to showcase incredible stories of success which has generated tangible benefits for participating countries, including increased investments, improved trade, job creation, poverty alleviation, and people's livelihood improvement over the past 10 years," Maya Majueran, director of Belt and Road Initiative Sri Lanka, has noted
Over the years, the BRI has faced challenges, including issues related to debt repayment in recipient countries. Some infrastructure projects have not succeeded, resulting in concerns about financial sustainability. Additionally, critics argue that the BRI serves as a tool for China to expand its geopolitical and economic influence. China is adapting the BRI, focusing on higher returns and shifting towards a normative economic model. The BRI is no longer just about physical infrastructure; it also encompasses digital connectivity and higher-quality projects. China is changing its lending practices, targeting "small but beautiful" projects with better returns and higher standards.
China is increasingly using the BRI to advance its own vision of the global order. While the BRI started as an economic initiative, it has grown to represent China's approach to development and governance. Recipients of Chinese investments face fewer demands for political reforms, human rights standards, or anti-corruption measures. This is seen by some as a more pragmatic approach compared to the demands imposed by Western institutions.
The West, particularly the G7 countries, has recognised the need to provide an alternative to the BRI. Initiatives to boost investment in infrastructure in low- and middle-income countries have been unveiled, and President Joe Biden has called for a stronger role for international financial institutions in supporting poorer countries. These efforts are viewed as an investment in the rules-based order and a counterbalance to China's influence.
A significant milestone
The third BRF for International Cooperation represents a significant milestone in the BRI journey and is a testament to China's commitment to global development and connectivity. It’s timing is significant, occurring against the backdrop of geopolitical conflicts and economic challenges worldwide, from tensions in Europe and the Middle East to a sluggish global economy. The founder of Germany-based think tank the Schiller Institute, Helga Zepp-LaRouche, has emphasised the BRI's role in uniting humanity and promoting shared prosperity. She believes that the BRI has become the greatest infrastructure project in history and is laying the economic foundation for a global community with a shared future.
While challenges and adjustments have emerged along the way, the BRI's success and inclusivity are acknowledged by participating countries. The forum offers an opportunity to build stronger ties, discuss high-quality cooperation, and demonstrate the benefits of a shared vision for global development. The choices made now will shape the future of global connectivity and cooperation.
The writer is a freelance journalist with special interest in economy.
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