Forum weighs in with ideas to bring world more certainty

Forum: Openness, actions key to tackling problems

In these uncertain times, when the world is grappling with conflicts and challenges, many countries and their people still yearn for growth, collaboration, peace and common development, and their expectations should not be ignored, eminent scholars and politicians said on Thursday.

They made the remarks at the Global Strategic Dialogue (2023), a high-level forum held in Beijing. The event, themed "Global Opportunities and Challenges: Seeking Certainty in an Uncertain World", was sponsored by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and China Daily.

Gao Xiang, president of CASS, said in his opening remarks that China is ready to work with various parties to bolster joint efforts in safeguarding peace, securing a stable global environment and helping the people of every nation live happily and thrive.

China is willing to join hands to spur growth, "further building on an open world economy amid anti-globalization challenges and constantly injecting impetus for global economic growth and governance", Gao said.

The nation seeks greater collaboration in boosting openness, inclusiveness and exchanges among cultures in order to enjoy the beauty of harmony brought by diversity, he added.

Qu Yingpu, publisher and editor-in-chief of China Daily, told the forum that China, as the world's second-largest economy, has always been a builder of world peace, a contributor to global development and a defender of the international order.

President Xi Jinping proposed successively the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, outlining the beautiful vision of a global community with a shared future, Qu said.

"I suggest think tanks and media organizations in China and other countries have frank conversations, and jointly promote the building of a new form of international relations that features mutual respect, equity, justness and win-win cooperation," Qu said.

Yasuo Fukuda, a former Japanese prime minister, said that in order to introduce certainty in an uncertain world, countries need to "make productive adjustments in the face of changes and should earnestly work on self-adjustment at the same time".

"I firmly believe that turbulence, bewilderment and the uncertain status are just a fragment of the world's development process," he said in a written speech delivered at the forum.

"China should have full confidence in and stay true to its ideal of building a global community with a shared future, and make its due contribution," he said, adding that this would serve the expectations of a harmonious world.

Observers noted that openness, inclusiveness and actions are key to addressing multiple complications brought by short-term, midterm and long-term factors, including the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, armed conflicts and technological advances.

Getachew Engida, former UNESCO deputy director-general and co-president of the China-Africa Leadership Development Institute at Tsinghua University, said the world is more connected today than ever before with ideas and resources moving across the globe. But, he cautioned, "it doesn't necessarily mean that there is more understanding", nor does it mean that the capacity for working together toward global challenges is being adequately harnessed.

He called on the world to "bridge this gap through capacity building and people-to-people exchanges", and urged nations to better engage younger generations to provide relevant solutions to and wisdom on handling differences.

Hanan Morsy, deputy executive secretary and chief economist at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, said the world has seen a backlash against the progress toward globalization from domestic resistance forces in some countries.

The world should focus on achieving globalization in a way that is more inclusive and more sustainable, and in a way that benefits all, she said.

Grzegorz W. Kolodko, director of Transformation, Integration and Globalization Economic Research at Kozminski University and former deputy prime minister of Poland, lashed out at protectionism, saying that people in many parts of the world are excluded from access to social services, education and healthcare.

He hailed China's efforts in building a global community with a shared future, the country's "smart and intelligent utilization of globalization" and its role in pooling the strengths of different markets, goods and services.

Ashok K. Kantha, former Indian ambassador to China, said the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is being "seriously delayed" as the global population below the poverty line is increasing in the post-pandemic era and the world is witnessing "de-risking" attempts.

Kantha said he does not see "any possibility" of harming the Chinese economy by advancing strategies such as "de-risking". He also voiced his confidence in a multipolar world, saying the rise of developing countries such as India and South Africa "should not be underestimated".