In September 2021, Chinese President Xi Jinping introduced the Global Development Initiative (GDI) at the United Nations General Assembly. This proposal quickly garnered global attention and a warm response, especially from developing economies.
In June 2022, Xi hosted a high-level dialogue in Beijing focused on global development. He emphasized the need for collective action to establish a new development paradigm that ensures benefits for all, promotes balance, coordination, inclusiveness, win-win cooperation, and common prosperity.
The world today faces significant challenges across various dimensions\u2014economic, financial, social, political, cultural, and ecological. Reflecting on these issues, Xi highlighted during the first Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in May 2017 that the world is grappling with \"three deficits\": peace, development, and governance. In March 2019, he added a fourth deficit: trust.
While these deficits are interconnected, the development deficit has become increasingly severe and urgent across developed, developing, and underdeveloped economies alike. Several factors contribute to this situation.
Firstly, the momentum for global development is waning. The growth dividends from previous waves of scientific and technological revolutions have been exhausted, leading to a shortage of development drivers.
Additionally, current global growth rates are insufficient. Following the Great Recession in 2008, the global economy's growth, particularly in developed nations, has decelerated or even stagnated, resulting in inadequate expansion.
The World Bank's June 2024 release of the Global Economic Prospects report echoes these concerns. While near-term prospects show some improvement, the global outlook remains subdued by historical standards. The report forecasts that in 2024-2025, economic growth will fall below the 2010s average in nearly 60 percent of countries and economies, representing over 80 percent of the global population.
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
