Speech by H.E. Xi Jinping President of the People's Republic of China at the Conference Marking the 50th Anniversary of the Restoration of the Lawful Seat of the People's Republic of China in the United Nations

Aquaculture in rice-based farming systems plays an important role for food security and poverty alleviation. Myanmar has extensive rice field resources, and rice-fish culture has been practised in the country since the mid-1990s. The Government observed that aquatic production, in addition to the rice crop, was a critically important product for rural livelihoods. However, although vast resources that can be utilized for rice-fish are available in Myanmar, this industry has not been highly successful. Its development has progressed at a slow rate, mainly due to some major constraints, e.g. lack of skilled technicians for selecting optimized fish species; lower farming management expertise; poor design of rice fish farming facility; insufficient qualified technicians on rice-fish culture; insufficient fish seed supplies; and lack of funds for rice-fish farming and other related projects

Chinese Foreign Ministry on 22 Oct. 2021 released the Position Paper on China's Cooperation with the United Nations.

With rapid growth in economies and societies, most developing countries are facing common challenges in treating waste, such as municipal solid waste, sludge, hazardous waste, fly ash and slag. Industrial and municipal waste have caused heavy pollution, impacting the environment and human health. Waste is a growing problem for all developing countries. Viet Nam produces over 15 million tonnes of waste each year from various sources. The reuse, recycling, collection, treatment and disposal of waste can pose a significant risk to the environment. Some Governments have issued polices to encourage recycling, but most do not have the capacity to develop waste utilization technologies. Both Viet Nam and Thailand have limited access to advanced waste utilization technologies nationwide.

The adoption of information technology provides opportunities and conditions to promote economic development, enhance traditional industries and develop new information industries and high- and new-technology industries. It also has a significant impact on urban development, bringing new ideas and innovative methods to city management. Based on the development experience of China, informatization correlated positively with gross domestic product growth and benefited urban management. Higher levels of information technology lead to greater efficiency and faster economic growth for cities. In some developing countries and regions, the slow development of information technology infrastructures has resulted in a lack of awareness and opportunities for citizens to access the latest information technology and use it on a daily basis for life and work. With assistance, developing countries will be able to implement good practices on the development of information technology and discover concrete ways to leverage it to promote urban development.

Agroforestry, or the use of trees in agriculture, is a traditional farming practice in India, Nepal and China that provides food, nutrition and ecosystem services to support livelihoods and agricultural production. The modern agricultural trend towards commercial monocultures has siphoned resources and attention from this indigenous system. Agroforestry systems require a longer waiting period before beginning production than annual crops. Therefore, the need for farmers to make both cash and time investments during the early years of planting presents major challenges. Consequently, adding seasonal and annual harvests available from the first year could be a vital boost to the viability of agroforestry systems for smallholders’ livelihood security. This is possible through the integration of agroforestry with mushroom cultivation.

Landlocked and hilly, Rwanda is one of world’s least developed countries and one of Nile River headstream countries. It faces major social challenges such as a high poverty and unemployment rate, and major economic challenges, such as a weak industrial capacity, with over 95 percent of produce imported. In addition, it faces major ecological challenges with severe soil and water erosion, as well as a negative impact on countries downstream of the Nile River caused by a sharp decline in forest coverage from 75 percent before the 1994 genocide to 28 percent. Rwanda has rich bamboo resources but are untapped due to lack of technology.

China was not only a supporter and initiator of South-South cooperation (SSC) in its nascent stage, it is also a major contributor to growth in Southern countries today, playing more of a leading role in SSC than ever before. It firmly safeguards the new globalization model, works to build a community with a shared future for humankind, advocates new development concepts nationwide and advances the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Nevertheless, South-South and triangular cooperation still face a number of important challenges at the international level, as well as in China. For example, while globalization has enabled many people to escape poverty, its benefits are not shared equitably and its costs fall disproportionately on the poor and vulnerable. Improved cooperation is therefore needed so that countries may learn from each other, grow more quickly, close income gaps and build inclusive, resilient societies. Greater efforts are needed to leverage partnerships with stakeholders from multilateral agencies, civil society, the private sector and think tanks to increase their engagement in SSC.

The increasing economic and technical capacities of the South and the emergence of a growing group of Southern countries, such as Brazil, China, India, South Africa and the Gulf countries, as influential stakeholders in international economic relations have created important opportunities for South-South development cooperation as a complement to North-South cooperation. China, as a large developing country with a great deal of development experience, has always been a champion and staunch supporter of South-South cooperation. Yet, despite this commitment, stakeholders in the Chinese Government recognize that the full potential to share Chinese knowledge and experiences with the world, and to bring Southern solutions to China, has not yet been realized. For example, most SSC activities in China are still carried out on a bilateral basis led by the Government with minimal participation of the private sector. Like many South-South initiatives, funds mobilization and utilization efficiency are limited.

Xi emphasizes South-South cooperation