China Calls for Stronger South-South Cooperation

China said Thursday that it is particularly imperative and urgent for developing countries to carry forward the spirit of solidarity and enhance the South-South cooperation at a time when they are faced with common challenges.

The statement came as Chinese Vice Premier Li Lanqing, head of the Chinese Government delegation, took the floor at the first South Summit of the Group of 77 since its founding in 1964.

"The South-South cooperation is, first and foremost, a solidarity spirit," he said. "It is also an important way for developing countries to seek greater strength and pursue common development."

The founding of the Group of 77 more than three decades ago significantly symbolizes this important solidarity spirit and is of great importance and far-reaching influence, he said.

Since then, developing countries have spoken in one voice in the international political and economic arena, fought unremittingly for their legitimate rights and interests as one strong force and made a remarkable contribution to the efforts to change the irrational international political and economic order, he said.

"It is particularly imperative and urgent for us to carry forward the spirit of solidarity and enhance the South-South cooperation at a time when we are confronted with common challenge, " he said.

"To get united is the only way for developing countries to enhance their status in the North-South dialogue, effectively participate in making decisions related to world economy and safeguard their own interests to the maximum in the course of the globalization," he said.

"Though the economic globalization has presented us severe challenges, it has also afforded us a big room for cooperation," he said.

"We must seize the opportunity to continuously strengthen coordination and cooperation in the financial, trade, debt and other important economic areas, give play to our respective strength to make up for our deficiencies, and broaden the sphere of cooperation so as to tap the potential of the South-South cooperation," he said.

"It has been proved that while continuing to deepen our cooperation in traditional fields, we can very well expand it into science and technology, education, investment and hi-tech industries so as to inject new vigor and vitality into the South-South cooperation," he said.

"The new situation requires new thinking and new approaches to the South-South cooperation," he said. "To expand such cooperation calls for vigorous support and big input from the governments of all countries as well as the participation of the business community and other quarters of society."

"It is necessary for all governments to formulate more pro-active policies in the light of their specific national conditional conditions, and support enterprises engaged in the South-South cooperation with incentives," he said.

"The South-South cooperation should be open, allowing the participation of international organizations and developed countries," he said. "In the meantime, we should actively engage ourselves in regional and sub-regional cooperation, which will in turn help deepen and expand the South-South cooperation."

The South-South cooperation is among the four theme under discussion at the South Summit, which opened Wednesday to map out a strategy for common development in the South in the new century.

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