Benefiting Global South

This year marks the 12th anniversary of the proposal of the Belt and Road Initiative in 2013, and over the past 12 years, more than 150 countries and international organizations have signed cooperation agreements with China, according to the Foreign Ministry.

Major infrastructure projects, such as the China-Laos Railway and the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway, have been completed and are now in operation.

Lin Songtian, a member of the 14th CPPCC National Committee and deputy director of the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the CPPCC National Committee, said the BRI has driven the development of participating countries. "The BRI has optimized their environment for investors, built a number of special economic zones and industrial parks, created a massive amount of jobs and improved people's livelihoods," he said.

It has also enabled Chinese enterprises' operations overseas with industrial parks and supporting infrastructure, policies, laws and services, he told reporters on Tuesday.

Speaking of the benefits created by BRI flagship projects, he cited the example of the Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway, which has helped Ethiopia fast-track its poverty reduction and development by providing a gateway to the sea for a population of over 100 million people.

China-Europe Railway Express freight services, another major BRI project, reaches 25 countries and more than 220 cities in Europe, "creating a new land transportation corridor between Asia and Europe, and building a strong bond of interest between China and Europe in terms of friendship and common development", he said.

"Actions have proved that building the Belt and Road is beneficial to the countries and their people, connecting the five continents and benefiting all mankind, and it is a monumental project in this century that serves and benefits this generation and beyond," Lin said.

"We are convinced that under the joint efforts of various parties, high-quality co-building of the Belt and Road will make the Chinese people's dream journey to the world more accessible, and enable more people in the world to share the opportunities for development and prosperity," he added.