China's International Development Cooperation in the New Era
4. Deepening Financial Integration
China actively helps participating countries to improve their financial systems and build cooperation platforms for financing, paving the way for financial integration.
－Supporting the improvement of financial systems. China assists Belt and Road participants in optimizing their financial environment, a prerequisite for their integration into the international financial system. In 2015, China helped Laos to build its national bankcard payment system, a constructive step in maintaining the financial stability of Laos and promoting financial connectivity with neighboring countries. The China-IMF Capacity Development Center has provided intellectual support to Belt and Road participants to improve their macro-economic and financial frameworks. China set up the Research Center for Belt and Road Financial and Economic Development, which serves as an important think tank for enhancing capacity building in financial integration.
－Building multilateral cooperation platforms for financing. The Multilateral Cooperation Center for Development Finance (MCDF) was jointly established by China, the World Bank, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the Development Bank of Latin America, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the European Investment Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, and the International Fund for Agricultural Development. The MCDF aims to promote connectivity among international financial institutions and relevant partners, and attract more investment in the Belt and Road through sharing information, supporting project preparation and building capacity.
5. Fostering Closer People-to-People Ties
People-to-people friendship is the cornerstone of sound state-to-state relations, and heart-to-heart communication holds the key to deeper friendship. China promotes people-to-people exchanges and cultural cooperation with partner countries through projects designed to improve the lives of local people, thus increasing mutual appreciation, mutual understanding and mutual respect, and reinforcing the social foundation of the Belt and Road Initiative.
－Improving people's lives. China has launched a series of people-oriented projects in Belt and Road countries to address such issues as housing, water supply, health care, education, rural roads, and assistance to vulnerable groups, helping to fill gaps in infrastructure and basic public services.
China has assisted C?te d'Ivoire, Cameroon, Ethiopia and Djibouti in building water supply systems to ensure access to safe drinking water. It has aided Sri Lanka, Senegal, Guinea, Niger, Mozambique, South Sudan, Jamaica, Suriname, Dominica and the Democratic Republic of the Congo in building hospitals to improve local medical services and make it easier for local people to access medical treatment.
China has helped Belarus build government-subsidized housing to improve the living conditions of the vulnerable. From 2016 to 2019, it provided over 2,000 free cataract surgeries in Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Uzbekistan.
－Furthering people-to-people exchanges. China has invited representatives from Belt and Road countries such as Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Kazakhstan to engage in people-to-people exchanges in China, increasing their knowledge and understanding of China's national conditions and culture. It has also sent youth volunteers to other Belt and Road countries such as Laos and Brunei to foster closer people-to-people ties and facilitate cultural exchanges and mutual learning.
－Strengthening cultural cooperation. China has participated in 33 projects for the joint preservation of cultural relics with 17 Belt and Road countries. These include the protection and restoration projects for Angkor Wat in Cambodia, Bagan Buddhist pagodas in Myanmar damaged in earthquakes, and the ancient city of Khiva in Uzbekistan, as well as joint archaeological activities at Rakhat Ancient Ruins in Kazakhstan and the Bikrampur ruins in Bangladesh.
China has launched a project known as Access to Satellite TV for 10,000 African Villages aimed at providing digital TV connection for rural communities in more than 20 African countries, opening a new window for them to see the world. It has provided assistance to projects for radio and TV centers in Seychelles, the Comoros, Tanzania and Mauritius to improve the transmission capacity of local radio and television networks, making them important vehicles for cultural communication in their respective localities.
IV. Contributing to the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
As an active contributor to the implementation of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, China has been assisting other developing countries to reduce poverty, boost agricultural progress, support equal access to education, improve infrastructure, and speed up industrialization.
