China-ASEAN environmental forum commences in Beijing

Environmental cooperation between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) for this year is being discussed at a five-day forum in Beijing.

The 2019 ASEAN-China Environmental Cooperation Week started Monday and includes five seminars on ASEAN-China cooperation.

Topics for the seminars include national focal points for environmental cooperation, eco-friendly cities, operational and technical issues in environmental information sharing, and climate change policies and actions.

Zhang Jieqing, deputy head of the department of international cooperation with the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, said that environmental cooperation between China and ASEAN countries has achieved remarkable results.

"ASEAN countries are welcomed to actively participate in the construction of the green Belt and Road to push the implementation of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development," she said.

Tu Ruihe, UN Environment's chief representative in China, said that 28 percent of the world's metropolises are in the Asia-Pacific region.

By 2050 about 63 percent of the global urban population will live in the region, he said.

He said that China and ASEAN countries have developed their economies rapidly, but now face environmental challenges including climate change, food safety and poverty alleviation.

Tackling these challenges requires these countries to cooperate, he said.

The forum has been held eight times since 2011, gathering policymakers, researchers, entrepreneurs, and other stakeholders from China, ASEAN and international organizations.

The foreign economic cooperation office with the Ministry of Ecology and Environment held the 2019 forum.