GUIDELINES FOR THE CHINESE ECONOMY AND GLOBAL COOPERATION IN THE POST-PANDEMIC WORLD

Selcuk Colakoglu

This year’s government work report was delivered byChinese Premier Li Keqiang at the fifth session of the13th National People’sCongress （NPC）， China’snational legislature， inBeijing on March 5. Aswas expected， the 2022

government work reportrevealed a slew of key economictargets， such as China’s gross domestic product （GDP） growth， employmentand foreign trade. The roadmap-stylereport contained not only a summaryof the Chinese government’s workover the past year， but also outlinedthe country’s future priorities andgoals for socioeconomic development. Furthermore， the 2022 report wasreleased in the second year of the 14thFive-Year Plan period （2021-2025） as the world was reeling from the lingeringCOVID-19 pandemic， weak economicrecovery， and volatile regionalsituations.

Economic Targets

The pandemic has createdunexpected repercussions for theworld economy. Many economies have suffered dramatically. China is one ofthe few countries able to overcomethese grave economic challenges injust a year. Despite sporadic COVID-19resurgences and a complicated external environment， China’s GDP in 2021expanded 8.1 percent to 114 trillion yuan （about US$18 trillion） while its GDP percapita rose to 80，976 yuan （US$12，551），surpassing the global average. China isnow a fast-growing “middle-incomecountry.” China has set its GDP growthtarget at around 5.5 percent for 2022.

Foreign direct investment （FDI） into the Chinese mainland， in actual use，hit a record high of 1.15 trillion yuan（US$173.5 billion） in 2021. China’s FDIwill likely remain robust in 2022， withits large domestic market and strongmanufacturing base continuing toattract foreign investors. As a reflection of this， China rose to 12th on theGlobal Innovation Index 2021 releasedby the World Intellectual PropertyOrganization， making it the onlymiddle-income economy to rank in the top 30.

China was also successful in keeping its supplies stable to both nationaland international markets during thepandemic. As a major player in theglobal supply chain， China’s stableeconomic function kept the globaleconomy uninterrupted as much aspossible during the hectic days of thepandemic. China’s swift economicrecovery has been a promising sign forsustainable global economic growthin the coming years during the post-pandemic period.

China also plays an expandingglobal role and takes responsibilityfor environmental protection. Infact， the Chinese government aimsto promote green development andensure that China meets its targets fornationally determined contributionsin response to climate change by 2030. China will expedite the transition of its growth model to green developmentand promote both high-qualityeconomic growth and high-standardenvironmental protection. Energyconsumption per unit of GDP andcarbon dioxide emissions per unit ofGDP will be reduced by 13.5 percentand 18 percent， respectively. Cleanenergy consumption accounted for25.3 percent of China’s total energyconsumption in 2021. China alsodeclared its commitment to achievecarbon neutrality by 2060 through itsgreen growth strategy.

The year 2022 will be crucial forChina to align efforts to consolidateand expand poverty alleviationachievements with rural revitalization endeavors. In February 2021， Chinadeclared elimination of absolutepoverty after lifting nearly 100 million rural poor people out of poverty overeight years. China plans to createmore than 11 million new jobs in2022 according to the governmentwork report. With the pandemichampering global poverty reductionefforts， Chinese President Xi Jinpingrecently said that China would take anactive part in the Global DevelopmentInitiative， which aims to accelerate theimplementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and build aglobal community of development with a shared future.

China Calls for Multilateralism toCombat Aggregated Global Challenges

Today’s world is facing gravechallenges ranging from the pandemicto developmental problems and climate change. Global challenges and trans-border disasters like COVID-19 cannot be handled at the national level. Upholding a spirit of true multilateralism， China has been actively participating in the reform of the global governance system to make globalization more open， inclusive，balanced， and beneficial for all.

Developing good global governance is key to handling all these difficulties in a proper and timely manner. China stands ready to work with all other countriesin the international community tomake new and greater contributionsto promoting world peace， stability，development， and prosperity， according to the 2022 government work reportsubmitted to the national legislaturefor deliberation. Promoting commonprosperity and improving people’s lives were also the goals of China’s globalresponsibility efforts.

China has always been a staunchsupporter of multilateralism andinsisted on solving all global issuesthrough dialogue. It recently underlined “economic globalization” as the pathto achieving sustainable developmentand poverty alleviation at the globallevel. Chinese initiatives are key tosupporting developmental momentum in developing countries.

In 2022， China will promote high-quality cooperation under the Beltand Road Initiative （BRI）， according to the government work report. Facinga depressed world economy， Chinais committed to promoting commondevelopment of all nations. On top ofa series of growth-driving measures，the BRI has become the world’sbroadest-based and largest platformfor international cooperation. TheBRI has become the engine of growthand modernization of the economicinfrastructure of many countries. Forinstance， at the beginning of 2022，foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia，Bahrain， Kuwait， Oman， Turkey， andIran， as well as the secretary general of the Gulf Cooperation Council， visitedChina， testifying to those countries’growing enthusiasm for cooperationwith China. The BRI provides aframework for cooperation betweenChina and the Middle East countries.Many new BRI-related projects will start in Asia， Africa， and Europe before theend of 2022.

Concrete Action to Fight thePandemic

Since the outbreak of COVID-19，China has conducted close cooperation with international organizationsand forums like the World HealthOrganization （WHO） and the G20 tofight the pandemic effectively at theglobal level. To combat the pandemicworldwide， China has also proposedthe COVID-19 vaccine be a global public good and advocated global vaccinecooperation. At present， China is theworld’s largest provider of COVID-19vaccines.

In total， China has provided over2.1 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccinesto more than 120 countries andinternational organizations， accounting for a third of the total vaccinationsoutside China.

Recently， China announced that itwould provide another 1 billion dosesto African countries： 600 million given as donations and the other 400 million provided through joint productionbetween Chinese and Africaninstitutions. In addition， the countrywill donate 150 million more doses tomember countries of the Associationof Southeast Asian Nations （ASEAN）.Chinese companies have also launched joint production and filling plants with some developing countries， and theannual manufacturing capacity of such projects has exceeded 1 billion doses.

The international community stillfaces grave economic， developmental，environmental， and diplomaticchallenges in the early post-pandemicera. Rising trends of economicand political unilateralism andprotectionism are still aggravatingglobal challenges. The 2022 government work report clearly shows that Chinawill stick to its commitment to support multilateralism and global governanceto build a cooperative world.