The recent economic work conference proposed to support the implementation of the eight actions of high-quality "Belt and Road" cooperation, which can be coordinated and promoted as a major landmark project and "small but beautiful" livelihood projects, pointing out the path for further expanding high-level opening up.
Since its inception in 2013, the Belt and Road Initiative has achieved remarkable results in promoting the economic development and social progress of countries along the Belt and Road. However, in the process of advancing the Belt and Road Initiative, it is inevitable that some unprecedented challenges will be encountered. Especially in recent years, with the intensification of climate change and the increasing prominence of environmental problems, green and low-carbon transformation has received widespread attention. At the national level, China is committed to incorporating the concept of green and low-carbon into the construction of the Belt and Road Initiative, integrating sustainable and high-quality development throughout the Belt and Road Initiative, and striving to build a "Green Silk Road" that is conducive to the global green and low-carbon transformation.
The Belt and Road Initiative is an effective measure for China to strengthen cooperation among neighboring countries and achieve common development, and in the current context of high-quality development, it is particularly necessary to integrate green and low-carbon into the construction of the Belt and Road. As a result, the green Belt and Road Initiative came into being. As green development has become the consensus of all mankind, green "Belt and Road" has gradually become the main direction of "Belt and Road" construction. At this stage, China's cooperation projects with countries along the Belt and Road have achieved remarkable results in the fields of green infrastructure, green energy, and green finance.
Green infrastructure. Infrastructure construction is an important project that China has promoted to countries along the Belt and Road Initiative. At present, the railway construction project protects the local ecological environment and is a model for green infrastructure construction. For example, the China-Laos Railway fully protects the natural resources along the route between China and Laos and retains the local ecological pattern. The Mombasa-Nairobi Railway avoids ecologically sensitive areas such as wildlife prone areas, and maintains the local ecological environment and green development.
Green energy. At present, China has built a large number of new energy projects in countries along the "Belt and Road", aiming to seek green development and promote energy transition. For example, China's construction of the Sachar wind power station in Pakistan has delivered clean electricity to the local area, and green power plants account for a large scale and proportion in the local area. At the same time, China is also committed to shutting down coal-fired power projects that are not conducive to low-carbon development, and effectively promoting the global energy transition.
Green Finance. Green finance is an effective auxiliary means for China to build a green Belt and Road with countries along the Belt and Road. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and the New Development Bank (NDB) of the BRICS countries, initiated by China, are committed to promoting the financing and implementation of green projects through green credit. At the same time, the Export-Import Bank of China and the China Development Bank have also provided credit support for the development of green infrastructure and green energy projects in relevant countries, effectively promoting the green development of the co-construction countries.
The construction of the green "Belt and Road" started relatively late, and it faces the following problems in the actual promotion of construction:
First, the green development of the co-construction countries has different national conditions, and the regional resources and environment are complex and diverse. The countries along the green "Belt and Road" have different ecological environments due to their different geographical environmental characteristics. Therefore, the resource and environmental problems faced by countries in different regions are also different. For example, South America, Africa and other regions are equipped with a large number of ecological reserves, and it is necessary to avoid destroying local biodiversity when planning project construction;Central Asia, West Asia and other regions are in arid and semi-arid regions, and investing in green projects in the region should focus on the use of water resources. Therefore, it is necessary to take into account various different scenarios and multi-faceted complex factors, and the construction and promotion of green projects in countries along the Belt and Road are greatly more difficult.
Second, some countries along the Belt and Road retain extensive development methods, and the concept of green development lags behind. On the one hand, the sustainable and high-quality development of the economy and the rapid growth of economic development cannot be effectively balanced in some countries along the "Belt and Road", and relevant countries often pay more attention to the huge benefits brought by the current rapid economic growth, while ignoring the green and low-carbon transformation. On the other hand, due to the lack of supporting top-level design for green development and advanced low-carbon transition technologies, the concept of green development in these developing countries is relatively lagging behind, and the willingness to promote green development is not strong, which makes it much more expensive for China to promote green Belt and Road construction projects locally.
Third, there is fierce competition in international green development, and China's ability to operate overseas green development projects needs to be improved. On the one hand, China is facing a severe international situation, and developed countries such as Europe and the United States have exported extremely high environmental regulatory standards to some "Belt and Road" countries, making it difficult for Chinese enterprises to meet the standards for new projects built locally. On the other hand, there is a problem of information asymmetry in China's connection with the co-construction countries, and there is a lack of sufficient understanding of the local market conditions, technical level, laws and regulations, etc., and the ability to deepen and develop green development projects needs to be further strengthened.
Adhering to the Belt and Road Initiative and promoting green and low-carbon development is China's plan in the face of climate change and environmental degradation, which reflects China's wisdom and responsibility as a major country in building a community with a shared future for mankind. According to the problems and challenges existing in China's green Belt and Road construction at this stage, this paper puts forward the following policy suggestions:
The first is to conduct in-depth research on the national conditions of countries along the "Belt and Road", and focus on key areas of cooperation according to local conditions. The "Belt and Road" countries often show different characteristics due to their national conditions, markets and geographical regions. In the early stage of the promotion and construction of the green Belt and Road, it is necessary to have an in-depth understanding of the specific conditions of the countries along the Belt and Road, and take targeted green development measures according to local conditions. In specific areas of cooperation with the co-construction countries, we should further focus on green infrastructure, green energy, green finance and green industry to promote low-carbon development.
The second is to publicize and promote the concept of green development and actively disseminate China's green development experience. In view of the fact that some developing countries are lagging behind in the concept of green development, it is necessary to start from the root cause that developing countries believe that the traditional extensive industrialization and green development concepts are incompatible, and give the countries along the Belt and Road the confidence to achieve industrialization in the green and low-carbon transformation through the construction of successful green demonstration projects. In addition, it is possible to promote and exchange green practice experience by holding regular seminars in the world, so that China's green development experience can be implemented in more regions.
The third is to promote green technology innovation and enhance the construction capacity of China's own green projects. It is recommended to strengthen the research and development of green development technologies that match the national conditions of countries along the "Belt and Road", and actively promote the large-scale application of green and low-carbon technologies. On the one hand, it is suggested that Chinese enterprises, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, should actively build the "Belt and Road" green brand, actively seek opportunities for cooperation and reciprocity, effectively integrate green technology with local production and construction, and demonstrate the unique advantages of domestic green industries. On the other hand, the top-level design and targeted guidance for enterprises are also particularly important, and it is recommended to provide enterprises with the latest interpretation of the resource endowment, national conditions and relevant laws and regulations of the countries along the "Belt and Road" through symposiums and special lectures, so as to help Chinese enterprises better "go global" and promote the green and low-carbon development of the "Belt and Road" construction.
The author: Lin Boqiang, Dean of the China Energy Policy Research Institute, Xiamen University.
Edited by Yue Caizhou.
Proofread by Lucy.