Voluntary National Review 2016, China | High-Level Political Forum

Executive Summary of China’s Actions on the Implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

In September 2015, H.E. Xi Jinping, President of China, attended the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit and joined other leaders in endorsing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, providing guidance to national development of member states and international development cooperation in the next 15 years.

As the largest developing countries in the world, China has always place development as the first priority. The 13th Five-Year Plan was reviewed and approved by the Fourth Session of the 12th National People’s Congress in March 2016, defining the development concept featuring innovative, coordinated, green, open, and shared development. In the coming years, China will pursue innovative development and improve the quality and efficiency of development. Coordinated development will be promoted to form a balanced structure of development. China will pursue green development by promoting a green and low-carbon development model and lifestyle, protecting ecological system. It will make great efforts to deepen opening-up, thus realizing win-win cooperation. Shared development will be facilitated to improve people’s well being. China will seek coordinated development in the economic, political, cultural, social and ecological fields in order to build a moderately prosperous society in all respects as planned.

China attaches great importance to implementation of the 2030 Agenda and believes that the principles of Peaceful Development, Win-win Cooperation, Integration and Coordination, Inclusiveness and Openness, Sovereignty and Voluntary Action, as well as “Common but Differentiated Responsibilities”, should be followed in building a new type of international relations featuring win-win cooperation, establishing all-round partnership, and achieving economic, social and environmental development in a balanced manner. Countries should be encouraged to formulate their domestic development strategies and take measures to implement the 2030 Agenda in accordance with national conditions and respective characteristics, while the means of implementation should be allowed to be differentiated, due to diversified national conditions and respective capabilities.

China suggests that 9 key areas should be prioritized in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. These areas are:

Eradicating poverty and hunger through targeted measures to alleviate and eliminate poverty, and enhancing agricultural production capacities and food security.
Implementing innovation-driven development strategies and generating momentum for sustainable, healthy and stable economic growth.
Advancing industrialization to inject impetus to coordinated development between urban and rural areas and among the three dimensions of sustainable development.
Improving social security and social services to ensure equal access to basic public services.
Safeguarding equity and social justice to improve people’s well-being and promoting all-round human development.
Protecting the environment and building protective barriers for eco-security.
Addressing climate change actively and integrating climate change response into national development strategies.
Promoting efficient utilization of resources and sustainable energy.
Improving national governance and ensuring economic and social development in line with the rule of law.

Implementing the 2030 Agenda is a systemic project. The international community needs to provide sound support from five dimensions including:

Strengthening capacity building of countries so as to improve institution building, increase public resources, and generate internal growth momentum.
Creating an enabling international environment for development, building a balanced, win-win and inclusive multilateral trading system and improving global economic governance.
Engaging with all stakeholders and working towards a more equitable and balanced global partnership for development.
Promoting coordination mechanism and incorporating development policy into global macroeconomic policy coordination.
Improving follow-up and review by conducting regular reviews of global implementation progress while review of national implementation would be done according to respective national conditions and the principle of voluntary action.

2016 is the first year of implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. China has made great efforts in its implementation, linking the 2030 Agenda with domestic mid-and-long term development strategies. The domestic coordination mechanism for the implementation, comprised of 43 government departments, has been established to guarantee the implementation. Great efforts has been be made to publicize the 2030 Agenda nationwide in order to mobilize domestic resources, raise public awareness, and creating favorable social environment for the implementation. China will also strengthen inter-sector policy coordination, review and revise relevant laws and regulations to provide policy and legislative guarantee for the implementation. In the next 5 years, China is determined to lift all the 55.75 million rural residents living below the current poverty line out of poverty, and to double its GDP and people's per capita income of 2010. China has already released the Position Paper on the Implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which reflects China’s views on the principles, priorities, policies and progress made in the implementation of the 2030 agenda. The position paper has been circulated as an UN General Assembly document to member states in April. China will also issue its national plan of implementing the 2030 Agenda this year and share its development experience with other countries.

As the G20 Presidency this year, China puts development issues at the heart of the G20 agenda, and lists Inclusive and Interconnected Development as one of the four key agenda items. With China’s efforts, G20 has placed the issue of development in a prominent position in its global macro policy framework for the first time, to optimize development policy coordination. It is the first time that G20 members has jointly drafted a collective action plan on the 2030 Agenda to inject political impetus into the global implementation progress on the 2030 Agenda. And it is also the first time that G20 has discussed the issues of Supporting Industrialization in Africa and Least Developed Countries to actively respond to demands of developing countries, especially African countries. China has also convened outreach dialogues with non-G20 countries and invited the largest numbers of development countries in G20 history to participate in all activities this year, to ensure that G20’s actions meet outside expectations.

As a responsible and large developing country, China will continue to actively take part in global development cooperation. It has provided support for more than 120 developing countries in achieving MDGs. In the future, China will deepen South-South cooperation to help other developing countries to implement the 2030 Agenda. China is currently implementing the measures announced by President Xi Jinping during his attendance at UN Summits Marking the 70th Anniversary, providing other developing countries with support in financing, technology and capacity building. China is making preparations for the Assistance Fund for South-South Cooperation, which will be put into operation as soon as possible. The Academy of South-South Cooperation and Development has been established and starts global enrollment in 2016, which will provide developing countries with opportunities for doctor’s degree and master’s degree education and short-term training. China has signed agreements on China-UN Peace and Development Fund with the UN and the fund will be put into operation in 2016 to finance projects concerning peace and development. China will carry forward the Belt and Road Initiative and promote the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the New Development Bank and other institutions to play greater roles with a view to making contribution to global development.

Looking ahead, China will shoulder the responsibility of implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, follow a development path featuring mutual benefit, win-win results and common development, and work with all countries to build a better future of sustainable development for all mankind.

China

Voluntary National Review 2016

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