Voices against the initiative
of the world total, as it rapidly improved basic infrastructure, such as water, electricity, and gas, as well as education and healthcare in these countries. As a result, local transportation costs have been lowered, the industrialisation process has been greatly advanced, and new job opportunities have been created. All these achievements are directly conducive to the economic development of those countries and contribute to their efforts to alleviate poverty.
At the same time, we also see that Chinese enterprises have expanded their overseas investment market through the joint construction of the BRI. The construction of major projects can also, to a certain extent, promote trade cooperation between China and its partner countries. It is fair to say that the joint construction of the BRI has promoted common development of China and its partner countries.
Doing the right thing
Based on my personal observation, the BRI has done at least three things quite right over the last 10 years.
First of all, it established a correct theme of promoting development. Building the BRI is about promoting development through various ways, including developing infrastructure, energy industry, trade, industrialisation, urbanisation, agriculture, and the rural areas. It is also about development on the national, regional and global levels.
Economic development, both the foundation and focus of the BRI, helps world countries including China to accelerate their modernisation process. The BRI also promotes people’s all-round development and the development of society. All of this contribute to efforts to realise the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.
Second, it chose the correct implementation path of starting with infrastructure construction. The BRI aims to build a better regional and global connectivity network, allowing various production factors to flow more freely. This helps to reduce business costs, and achieve more efficient interconnected regional and global growth.
Third, a correct institutional system has been established. The system defines BRI’s ultimate goal, which is to build a community with a shared future for mankind. It also manifests the characteristics of the BRI of being open and inclusive, follows the basic principles of extensive consultation, joint construction, and shared benefits, and adopts a cooperation approach featuring government guidance, market orientation, enterprise playing the leading role, pragmatic cooperation, and compliance with international standards.
Since the BRI is right in these key aspects, why is it that some countries and people still oppose it?
First, there are some misunderstandings. For example, as for the theme of jointly building the BRI, which is to promote development, some countries and people mistakenly believe that China wants to seek hegemony through it. For another example, we mentioned that the focus of effort in implementing the BRI is infrastructure construction, which will facilitate free flow of production factors, and in turn, global common development. However, there are some people who mistakenly