Ma Zhaoxu (second from left), China's ambassador to the United Nations (Photo: CRI)

New York (People’s Daily) – China’s ambassador to the United Nations said addressing unbalanced and inadequate development is highly important to implementing the 2030 Agenda and fostering a global community with a shared future.

Ma Zhaoxu made the remarks on Monday on the sidelines of the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.

Over the past four decades, China’s GDP grew by an average of 9.5 percent, and its foreign trade by 14.5 percent. According to current UN standards, more than 700 million Chinese have been lifted out of poverty, accounting for more than 70 percent of the global total over the same period.

Ma emphasized that unbalanced and inadequate development is a challenge facing the world. To achieve a shared prosperity, countries need to work together to pursue fair, open, comprehensive and innovative development by promoting fair development to ensure equal opportunities, pursuing open development to benefit everyone, being comprehensive to have a more solid basis, as well as being driven by innovation to achieve their full potential.

Ma added that unilateralism and protectionism are posing a threat to global growth, which has caused widespread concern and met with rejection worldwide.

Ma said that China is committed to contributing its part to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, stressing that the Belt and Road initiative is an effort that provides a China solution.

Ma also said that China will continue to work with the rest of the world for development.