US Expert: China’s Development Model Shows the SDGs Can Be Achieved
New York (ANTARA) – China’s practices in economic growth and poverty alleviation are worthy of emulation and have shown that the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) can be achieved, while the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is helping to advance them, a US expert said.
China’s economic success over the past two generations has provided a valuable example for other countries, said Lawrence Freeman, a US political-economy analyst on Africa who has been involved in economic development policy on the continent for more than three decades.
The world faces a major challenge in achieving the SDGs by 2030, with around 800 million people worldwide living in extreme poverty, Freeman said in a recent interview with Xinhua.
In Africa alone, about 440 million people live in extreme poverty—just under a third of the continent’s population—and poverty levels continue to rise, Freeman said.
“But the good news is that China, over the course of two generations, has completely transformed its economy, eradicated extreme rural poverty and led the world in infrastructure-based physical economic growth. China has proved that this can be done,” Freeman said.
China’s firm commitment to national development and its expertise in effective economic governance have shown the world that the SDGs can be achieved, he said.
The Global Development Initiative, proposed by China in September 2021, sets out essential development concepts that all countries need to understand. Meanwhile, the BRI and the growth of BRICS have provided crucial input and made tangible contributions on the ground towards achieving the SDGs, Freeman said.
China’s leading role in the Global South is valuable in promoting global economic progress, he said. “We must recognise that the future of the planet depends on the development of the Global South.”
The BRI has attracted much-needed infrastructure investment across developing sectors, support that the West has been reluctant to offer, Freeman said.
In Africa, the initiative has been a major contributor to physical infrastructure projects, particularly in power generation, railways, ports and airports, he said.
Freeman also called for a new paradigm dedicated to advancing economic progress in every country.
As part of this effort, he proposed establishing a new international credit institution to provide sufficient long-term, low-interest loans for infrastructure investment.
The latest UN data show that only 36 per cent of SDG targets for which trend data are available are on track or making moderate progress, while 15 per cent are regressing.
The UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was adopted in 2015 and is built around 17 SDGs.