Minister pledges multilateralism in forming green BRI

Minister of Ecology and Environment Huang Runqiu has reiterated China's commitment to uphold multilateralism in global environmental governance and green development in the Belt and Road Initiative, as the country proactively forges ahead with its domestic environmental protection efforts.

The minister made the remarks while addressing the opening ceremony at the annual general meeting of the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development, an event that also marked the council's 30th anniversary.

The council, a high-level think tank providing consultation to the Chinese government, is chaired by Vice-Premier Han Zheng. This year's gathering, which started on Monday, is themed "Building an Inclusive, Green and Low-Carbon Economy".

"Adhering to multilateralism, we will participate in global climate governance in a constructive manner," Huang said.

Huang is also the Chinese executive vice-chairman of the council, which now has 83 members and 38 special advisers from home and abroad.

While encouraging parties to comprehensively implement the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and its 2015 Paris Agreement, China will also actively implement the Convention on Biological Diversity, he said.

The country will also fulfill its obligations as host of the COP15 UN biodiversity conference and endeavor to see an ambitious and realistic post-2020 global biodiversity framework reached at the meeting, the minister said.

He vowed the ministry would hasten cooperation and investment efforts with BRI members related to green construction, saying China will support member countries in the development and utilization of clean energy.

Via South-South climate cooperation, the country will try its best to help developing nations enhance their capabilities in coping with climate change, particularly small island states, African nations and the least developed countries.

Noting significant progress in the country's environmental governance, Huang stressed that China will stay committed to a high-quality development path under the guidance of the Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization.

Ecological civilization is a concept promoted by President Xi Jinping for balanced and sustainable development that features harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature.

Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in 2012, China's ecological and environmental protection efforts have seen sweeping, historic and transformative changes, Huang stressed.

With great importance attached to ecological civilization in the past 10 years, the country has experienced unprecedented progress in environmental governance, he said. The average density of PM2.5 particulate matter in 339 major cities across the country, for example, dropped to 30 micrograms per cubic meter last year.

In 2013, when PM2.5 was monitored in only 74 of the world's major cities in accordance with current monitoring standards, the average PM2.5 concentration in those cities stood at 72 mcg/cu m, according to the ministry.

"The country has seen decreases in density of both PM2.5 and ozone for two straight years," the minister said.

Echoing the theme of CCICED annual gathering, Huang said China, as the largest developing nation, will be firmly committed to a green, low-carbon and high-quality development path that prioritizes ecological civilization.

Since its establishment in 1992, the council has witnessed historic changes in China's development philosophy and approaches.

"It has played a particularly important role in China's sustainable development progress," he noted.

He said he looks forward to seeing CCICED members and advisers continue to share valuable insights and help the council play its role as an inclusive, open, cooperative and mutually beneficial platform.

Aside from contributing wisdom to help improve the well-being of Chinese people and build a beautiful China, Huang said he also expects efforts from the council to promote balanced, coordinated and inclusive global development and inject momentum into the world's joint endeavors to build a clean and beautiful world.