(Photo/cctv.com)

As benefits of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) advance around the world, the BRI has become the world’s largest and most eye-catching source of common good, China Central Television (CCTV.com) reported on April 10.

Significant progress in the construction of policy coordination, facilities connectivity, unimpeded trade, financial integration and people-to-people bonds have been made since the proposal of the BRI nearly six years ago.

Thanks to the concerted efforts in the construction of the BRI, a number of projects have been completed and put into service in the past two years, including the Chinese-built Addis Ababa–Djibouti Railway, the China-Maldives Friendship Bridge, Abu Dhabi Terminal at Khalifa Port in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and the new deep water terminal at the Kuantan Port in Malaysia.

From 2013 to 2017, while global trade witnessed a sustained downturn, China saw a 4.88 percent growth in the total volume of trade with countries involved in the joint construction of the BRI.

In 2018, Chinese enterprises’ non-financial outbound direct investment (ODI) in 56 countries participating in the joint construction of the BRI amounted to $15.64 billion, up 8.9 percent year-on-year.

The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) expanded last year, inviting nine new member countries into the organization, raising the total number of member countries to 93.

The launch and completion of various projects, especially projects concerning the livelihoods of people and cultural characteristics in countries participating in the joint construction of the BRI, have brought tangible benefits to local people.

In the state-run Sihanoukville Autonomous Port (PAS) of Cambodia, for example, Chinese enterprises have not just built an industrial park, but have also equipped it with a vocational school, so local students can gain the skills required to work in the industrial park after graduation.

“Our ultimate goal is to build the Sihanoukville Special Economy Zone (SSEZ) into a model industrial zone with 300 enterprises and 80,000 to 100,000 industrial workers, a BRI project that brings great benefits to the people,” said Chen Jiangang, President of the SSEZ.