Brazilian academic hails accomplishments of country

China will overcome many challenges, from improving living standards in rural areas to addressing pressure from Taiwan separatists, through the leadership of the Communist Party of China and the strong support of the Chinese people, a Brazilian expert said.

"We are sure that the country will achieve its goal as a socialist and fully-developed nation in 2049," Marcos Cordeiro Pires, professor of international political economy at Sao Paulo State University, Brazil, said during the Vision China event on Sunday in Jiaxing, in East China's Zhejiang province.

Pires said the history of China is "a long journey marked by many sacrifices, much struggle and many achievements".

"Few countries in the world have a past associated with one of the great civilizations of history. However, only Chinese civilization can boast of more than 4,000 years of continuity," he said.

"Only a few Asian and African countries that faced European imperialism managed to regain their status as great powers. Among these few is China."

In 1949, only 20 percent of China's population was literate, and there were only a few thousand scientists in the country. "Today, China has the most people training in engineering, mathematics, science, and information technology," he said.

This achievement has enabled the country to become the second-largest economy and the largest exporter and importer globally, he said, adding that China is now a global leader in 5G and artificial intelligence. In 2019, China was also the first country to land a probe on the dark side of the moon.

Pires said that not many countries that suffered from imperialism and colonialism have been able to eliminate extreme poverty. China is the exception, having eradicated hunger and extreme poverty from the most populous country in the world last year, which counts as "one of the most outstanding achievements in human history", he said.

Currently, the world is still suffering from the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite being one of the first country to be hit, China has contained infections and revitalized its economy, becoming the only G20 nation to witness economic growth last year, he said, adding that it has also become one of the world's biggest suppliers of COVID-19 vaccines to other countries, including his home country, Brazil. According to China's Foreign Ministry, as of early June, the country had provided over 350 million doses to the international community, including vaccine aid to 80 countries.

"When looking for the reasons for China's achievements, two answers can be found: the determination and resilience of the Chinese people and the leadership of the Communist Party of China," Pires said.

The successes resulting from China's rapid growth have also brought new challenges. Since 2013, these include promoting a new type of urbanization, improving living standards in rural areas, and tackling the widening of income disparities, the middle-income trap and others.

"All these issues are very complex, but China will overcome these challenges with the experience acquired by the millions of officials and leaders of the CPC and the strong support of the Chinese people," he said.

zhangzhihao@chinadaily.com.cn