SCIO press conference on China's COVID-19 assistance and international development cooperation

People's Daily:

What role do China's foreign aid projects play in addressing climate change and promoting global green development? Thank you.

Zhang Maoyu:

Climate change is nature's alarm bell to humanity, and China is acutely aware of this. President Xi Jinping made a statement at the general debate of the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly. He announced that China aims to have CO2 emissions peak before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060. This is a major strategic decision made by China that considers both domestic and international situations. It demonstrates China's responsibility in actively addressing climate change and building a community with a shared future for mankind, and it shows China's determination to pursue green, low-carbon and high-quality development.

Since the 18th CPC National Congress, by offering foreign aid, we have helped to enact the South-South cooperation commitments concerning climate change, actively joined the international community on climate change action and supported developing countries' response to the challenges of climate change. During the last eight years, we have implemented more than 200 foreign aid projects that address climate change. Among them, there are about 70 climate change mitigation projects, including the solar power supply project at the Parliament Building of Pakistan, the green development project for the Addis Ababa river bank in Ethiopia, and others. Likewise, there are about 150 climate change adaptation projects, which include projects responding to floods in Nepal, hurricanes in Fiji, and tropical cyclones in Mozambique. We have also conducted 80 seminars on climate change topics and trained nearly 2,000 relevant personnel.

Next, foreign aid will focus on promoting green development to help developing countries improve their coping strategies for climate change. First, we will enhance project support and execute climate change environment protection projects. We will optimize clean energy and desertification prevention and control projects such as photovoltaics, biogas, and hydropower stations. Second, we will focus on environmental factors, strengthen the assessments of environmental protection and climate change factors in foreign aid projects, and promote the transition of projects to ones that are climate-friendly. Third, we will step up financial cooperation, strengthen coordination between the South-South Cooperation Assistance Fund and other funds – which include the special fund for Lancang-Mekong cooperation, the China-Africa Development Fund and the South-South Climate Change Cooperation Fund – to create synergy. Fourth, we will strengthen coordination and cooperation between central and local governments, leverage the geographical advantages of Yunnan, Tibet and other border provinces and areas, and provide assistance to neighboring countries in cross-border water resource management, nature reserve construction and more. Fifth, we will host experience exchanges and support developing countries as they take actions to maintain safe boundaries for nature. We will also encourage green recovery, green production and green consumption, promote a harmonious existence between man and nature, and let a sound ecology and environment be the inexhaustible source of sustainable development. Thank you.