The Belt and Road Initiative and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development:seeking linkages for global environmental governance

Global environmental cooperation serves as an important part in the Chinese ideal of building a Community with a Shared Future for all Human Beings. The report of 19 th CPC National Congress indicates that China is committed to proactive mitigation under the Paris Agreement and further participating in global environmental governance under the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and both of which are largely integrated to the Belt and Road Initiative(BRI). BRI are also closely linked with South-South environmental and climate cooperation proposed by China from previous UN summits. Based on shared ideas, intersected agendas, and compatible governance approaches, BRI and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development grow increasingly relevant and they might form synergies based on increasingly interactive relations. In sum,seeking and intensifying the linkages between BRI and 2030 sustainable development goals(SDGs) could address global environmental governance deficits and enhance cooperation among nations.

The"Belt and Road"Initiative:A Chinese Concept for Global Development

China's"Belt and Road"initiative is emerging as the Westerndominated world order is declining. Capitalism has intensified the richpoor divide and power politics have led to great upheavals. Western values have caused a"value dislocation"for non-Western countries. The world is calling for new development concepts. The"Belt and Road"initiative has emerged as an answer. It embodies China's ideas on global development.First, it works for the"common prosperity"of every country, which will ease contradictions between the South and the North. Second, it emphasizes geo-economic integration that will heal the fragmentation of Eurasia. Third, it advocates linkages between people and inclusiveness to create a new kind of civilization. However, many difficulties and challenges lie ahead for the implementation of the"Belt and Road"initiative.

The Contribution of the Belt and Road Initiative to the World's Right to Development

The Belt and Road Initiative makes an important contribution to the right to development in theory and practice in the current world. Since the reform and opening-up, the Chinese government puts the rights to subsistence and development before any other human rights, which effectively guarantees and accelerates a rapid economic development in China. Nowadays, countries along the Belt and Road have joined a "community of common destiny". Inside the "community of common destiny," countries have enjoyed not only the responsibility, rights and benefit of the right to development, but also a win-win cooperation that ensured the right to development. Therefore, the Belt and Road initiative enriches the UN Declaration on the Right to Development, and "community of common destiny" of countries becomes a higher form of the right to development.

The Interactive Development of China’s Retail Industry “Going global” Strategy in the Context of the Belt & Road Initiative

Helping China’s retail industry to "go global" and get actively involved in global value chain competition is an effective way to improve the international competitiveness of China’s retail industry and an important measure to enhance the Chinese manufacturing industry’s position in international markets. The Belt and Road Initiative is China’s national strategy providing guidance for strategic decision-making for China’s retail industry in terms of overseas target market selection, market access selection and overseas investment risk management. As such, efforts should be made to maximize the interactive development of China’s retail industry through the strategies outlined in the Belt and Road Initiative.

The Status Quo, Opportunity and Approach——the Development of Ethnic Minorities in the Context of the Belt and Road Initiative

Currently, China is advancing the Belt and Road Initiative, which creates a new opportunity of historical significance and provides guidance for the economic and social development of ethnic minority communities(particularly those in western China). Under the new historical conditions, it is necessary to innovate and improve China's regional aid policies and regional development strategies such as the "pairing assistance" and the Western Development, and organically combine them with the Belt and Road Initiative. In the meantime, China should revolve tightly around the internal and external "connectivity," and give full play to the functions of the "pairing assistance" policy and the "Western Development" strategy in a bid to boost the ethnic development of contemporary China within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative.

Contributing More Chinese Wisdom to the Belt and Road Initiative:Exploration and Practice of the China Region Development & Reform Institute

As the"Belt and Road"is gaining ground with higher quality,China’s think tanks have played a unique role in facilitating policy communication,enhancing people-to-people connectivity and promoting practical cooperation,and have contributed a lot of"Chinese wisdom"to the development of BRI.

Belt and Road Initiative and Realization of the Right to Development

The Belt and Road Initiative not only represents a new blueprint for realizing the right to development, but also provides a realistic approach and a possible solution for it. With clear goals and paths, the Belt and Road Initiativ e serves as a model for SouthSouth cooperation to promote development. Under the background of China’s economic progress, given China has the strong political will, adequate financial resources, and advanced technology to advance the initiative it will prove to be reliable driver of development. With the joint efforts of China and relevant countries, the Belt and Road Initiative will greatly promote the right to development of countries along the routes.

“Belt and Road Initiative” promotes textile industry to create new international development advantages

On September 7th,Sun Huaibin,vice president of China National Textile and Apparel Council,made a speech with the theme of''Belt and Road Initiative' and the development of China's textile industry',to discuss the harvest and direction of China's textile industry under the background of 'Belt and Road Initiative',in the warming-up section of 2017 the the 2nd China(Zhengzhou)International Futures Forum.

The Dissemination and Development of Chinese Medicine in Pakistan

The article focuses on the dissemination and development of Chinese medicine in Pakistan.Religious records show that Chinese medicine was introduced to Pakistan as early as 1,400 years ago,while Hijama(Chinese cupping)was used by Prophet Hazrat Muhammad to cure different types of diseases.Exchanges and cooperations between China and Pakistan continue to the present day.Acupuncture and moxibustion therapy,cupping therapy and herbal medicine are practiced with significant merits in today’s Pakistan.In the future,with the proposal of the Belt and Road Initiative and the landmark project of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor,Chinese medicine can be strengthened through cooperations at the herbal medicine trade level,the research and development level,the educational level,and the social association level.

Evaluation of the sustainable development level of countries along the Belt and Road and its impact factors:Empirical analysis based on the Super-efficiency slacks-based measure and Tobit measure models

Sustainable development is an important component of the Belt and Road Initiative(BRI)and is of great significance for evaluating the levels of sustainable development of countries along this route(henceforth,BRI countries).Therefore,this study aims to identify the factors that influence the levels of sustainable development of BRI countries in a reasonable and objective manner.Eventually,this study employs the super efficiency slacks-based measure(Super-SBM)model,which considers unexpected outputs to measure the level of sustainable development of BRI countries.The dynamic change and composition of the sustainable development level of these countries are calculated using the global Malmquist-Luenberger index.Furthermore,the Tobit model is used to identify the factors influencing the level of sustainable development of BRI countries in general and in various categories.The empirical results suggest the following points.(a)The overall level of sustainable development of BRI countries is low,whereas those of high-income and middle-and high-income countries are relatively high.(b)The overall sustainable development levels of BRI countries declined to a certain extent in 2008 owing to the effect of the financial crisis,.However,the sustainable development level of other countries,barring low-income countries,has gradually increased since 2011.(c)Since 2008,technological progress has replaced technical efficiency as the main driving force behind the improvement of the sustainable development level of BRI countries.(d)A U-shaped relationship is observed between the economic and sustainable development levels of these countries.(e)The level of science and technology and the proportion of renewable energy consumption can promote the sustainable development of these countries.Moreover,a negative correlation exists between the level of opening to the outside world and that of sustainable development of countries that mainly export resource-based products and are dominated by labor-intensive export industries.Barring low-income countries,the energy structure plays an effective role in improving the level of sustainable development.Finally,the study presents suggestions for China in the process of coping with the sustainable development of relevant countries during its promotion of the BRI.

Counteraction to China?Impact of the U.S.International Development Finance Corporation on China’s Development Finance

The United States passed the Better Utilization of Investment Leading to Development(BUILD Act),as a counterweight to China’s overseas development activities.Under the Act,the US established a new federal agency,the U.S.International Development Finance Corporation(DFC),to enhance U.S.development financing capabilities.To better understand the impact of the DFC on China’s development finance,this article analyzes the DFC’s purpose,functions,structure,and funding.Then it focuses on the purpose of establishing the DFC,providing a preliminary analysis of the potential motivation for its establishment.It also compares the China Development Bank(CDB)and the DFC based on their focused sectors.Finally,through an in-depth analysis of financial frictions in China-U.S.relations,this article argues that the DFC competes with China’s overseas development financing activities in the context of broader strategic competition between China and the U.S.

Comprehensive Disaster Risk Prevention of "the Belt and Road Initiative":Important Significance,Catastrophe Risk,International Cooperation and Strategic Countermeasure

"The Belt and Road Initiative"is major decision proposed by the CPC Central Committee with comrade Xi Jinping as the core co-ordinating the domestic and international overall situations,and concerns peaceful rise of China and extension of the strategic opportunity period of modernization construction.It needs multi-faceted safeguards to successfully impel"the Belt and Road Initiative",in which disaster risk identification and its effective prevention and control are indispensable links.By integrating geogeographic and atmospheric environmental factors,countries along"the Belt and Road Initiative"belong to frequent occurrence region of major natural disasters.It restricts not only the economic and social development of relevant countries but also implementation effect of"the Belt and Road Initiative"construction,and is also related to the success or failure of Chinese enterprises going out to a certain extent.It should enhance disaster prevention and mitigation and ensure safety of major infrastructure construction related to interconnection of"the Belt and Road Initiative"by disaster identification and prevention,which is the key of successfully impelling strategy implementation and major need for guaranteeing the people s livelihood of the countries along the line.The work of disaster prevention and mitigation in the countries along the line is generally weak,and it is urgent to raise the level of disaster prevention as a whole by promoting the disaster prevention and mitigation cooperation in the"the Belt and Road Initiative"area;improve the coverage and level of disaster risk insurance;enhance construction in monitoring and early warning capability of natural disaster;strengthen structural adjustment of economy,industry and land use responding to climate change risks;establish a comprehensive disaster reduction forum of"the Belt and Road Initiative",and contain relevant content in"the Belt and Road Initiative"series of high-end forum topics.

Evaluation of Sustainable Infrastructure in the Context of the Belt and Road Initiative:A Case Study of Kenya C12 Road Reconstruction Project

Sustainable development presents a challenge to most countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative(BRI).Given the importance of infrastructure as a key aspect of the BRI,it is of great importance to investigate sustainable infrastructure in BRI countries.This paper explores how infrastructure meets the criteria of sustainable development and promotes sustainability.However,existing evaluation frameworks are not target-oriented,systematic,and practical.To fill this gap,we provide the framework based on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and apply it to the evaluation of the C12 Road Reconstruction Project.We find that the project promotes local sustainable development as a whole but has negative effects in some respects.In addition to excellent project management,the project still can improve public communication and local integration.In terms of policy implementation,we suggest summarizing the successful business model and promoting top-down and multi-dimensions designs.

The Transition of Belt and Road Initiative from 1.0 to 2.0:Challenges and Implications of Green Development

China claims that the Belt and Road Initiative is a cross-regional comprehensive initiative covering the economy,social and environmental pillars.When it was first proposed,it identified five main areas which call for cooperation priorities,i.e.policy coordination,interconnection of facilities,unimpeded trade,financial integration and people-to-people bond.Scholars globally are focusing on the development of the Belt and Road Initiative as it has gone through several development stages.The Belt and Road Initiative initially focused on economic development,equal dialogue and cultural interchange between the Belt and Road Initiative partners and China,and now it has added the concept of green development.This paper reviews the Belt and Road Initiative documents since 2013 and analyses the changes of environmental policies in the Belt and Road Initiative,aiming to identify the challenges and implications of green development.The outcome of this paper provides insight into how the Belt and Road Initiative can contribute towards sustainable development with its partner countries.

China’s BRI Transportation Investments:Development Bonanza or Debt Trap?

Based on the China Global Investment Tracker(CGIT)database of 2005-2018,this paper creates a country-sector-year panel set for a study on the BRI’s investment effects on the transportation sector of BRI countries using the difference-in-differencesin-differences(DDD)method.Our study finds that the BRI has significantly increased transportation investments by Chinese companies in the BRI countries without causing significant rise in problem transactions.The"debt trap"narrative that the BRI aims to take control over host countries’sovereign rights in exchange for debt write-offs is not supported by evidence.Discussions on sub-samples reveal that the BRI has mainly propelled SOEs in making transportation investments to generate development effects in host countries,most of which are Asian countries,and that the preferred mode of investment is cross-border M&As.

中国与“一带一路”共建国家文化贸易成效、挑战与对策

加强与共建国家的文化贸易是中国推进共建“一带一路”倡议、促进文化开放发展的重要内容。自共建“一带一路”倡议提出以来,中国政府高度重视与共建国家的文化贸易发展,持续推进文化市场改革开放,深化文化交流与合作,强化制度、资金等多方面保障。当前,中国与共建国家的文化贸易取得了突出成效,总体目标方针与具体任务部署更加明确、合理,地方特色更加凸显,基地建设、项目投资取得新进展,中国与共建国家之间的文化产品贸易规模和顺差显著扩大,多个产业的文化产品输出取得了突破。然而,中国与共建国家的文化贸易受到内外部多方面因素的影响,面临文化差异等挑战。新发展阶段,中国要更加重视文化发展、加强区域协调联动、强化理论研究与实践,传承、弘扬中华文明,以高度的文化自信推动与“一带一路”共建国家文化贸易的高质量发展。

中国“一带一路”倡议的包容性开放效应——基于“一带一路”沿线国家HDI指数的经验分析

与以往发达国家主导和推动的经济全球化不同,中国“一带一路”倡议由于秉持着人类命运共同体先进理念,不仅为更多发展中国家融入全球价值链分工提供了更多机会,而且力图改善其分工地位,从而推动经济全球化朝着更加具有包容性开放的方向发展,让开放发展的成果能够更多地惠及世界各国尤其是其他发展中国家。在理论分析基础上,以人类发展指数(HDI)作为包容性开放效应的表征变量,基于2010—2019年ADBMRIO数据库中60个国家的经验数据,采用双重差分模型进行实证分析及稳健性检验,分析“一带一路”倡议的包容性开放效应。结果表明,“一带一路”倡议显著促进了沿线国家HDI提升,表现出较好的包容性开放特征,并且上述效应主要通过提升沿线国家全球价值链参与度和改善分工地位2个作用机制产生,理论假说得到了较好的逻辑一致性计量检验结果。据此可见,秉持人类命运共同体先进理念的“一带一路”倡议,不仅有着坚实的理论基础,而且实践经验证明中国已经走在推动包容性开放道路上,包容性开放效应在“一带一路”沿线国家初步显现。

国际减贫合作中的贫困类型识别——以“一带一路”国家为例

识别“一带一路”国家的贫困类型,推动精准减贫合作,是中国减贫经验有效分享的重点和难点。借助可持续生计框架构建“一带一路”国家贫困类型识别指标体系,有利于推动国际减贫合作。研究发现,在贫困程度方面,“一带一路”国家和区域之间的贫困状况呈现较大差异,高贫困度国家主要集中在非洲,中等贫困度国家较为均衡地分布在亚洲、非洲及拉丁美洲,而少数低贫困度国家则分布在欧亚地区。在贫困的成因方面,高贫困度国家的贫困往往是人力资本缺乏、社会治理不足、资源制约、联通落后和金融发展滞后等多种因素复合、叠加导致的后果,而中等和低贫困度国家也往往受到以上单一或双重因素的影响,导致国家陷入贫困。对贫困类型的识别有利于在国际减贫合作中的区域国别瞄准、方式选择和多主体参与等方面为国家提供政策参考,从而推动“一带一路”建设的分类施策和精准施策。

基于云模型的“一带一路”沿线省份国际冷链物流发展水平评价研究

在全球消费需求日益扩大的背景下,冷链产品进出口量剧增,为冷链物流提供新的发展机遇。为研究区域间国际冷链物流发展水平差异,考虑营商环境和地理因素,构建国际冷链物流发展水平评价指标体系,运用熵权-云模型对国际冷链物流发展水平进行评价,以“一带一路”沿线省份为例进行实证分析。结果表明:71%的省份国际冷链物流发展水平处于中上水平。在营商环境、基础设施和地理环境方面存在发展差异,其中进出口总额、冷藏车数、国际联系强度和对外开放水平是影响发展的主要因素。空间上,沿海省份国际冷链物流发展水平高于内陆省份,北部地区呈现“一核一副,周边聚集”的特征,东南沿海地区呈带状分布,西北地区呈现“中部低,两端高”的特征。