Interview: CPC leadership key to fulfilling Chinese people's dreams, says Egypt's ex-PM

Photo taken on Sept. 25, 2022 shows a "flower basket" at Tian'anmen Square in Beijing, capital of China. (Xinhua/Chen Zhonghao)

CAIRO, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- The Communist Party of China (CPC) has gone a long way toward boosting the prosperity and welfare of the Chinese people since its establishment over 100 years ago, former Egyptian Prime Minister Essam Sharaf has said.

"Eradicating extreme poverty is a miracle that is attributed to the CPC's fundamental thoughts and ideologies that proved to be the core and the driving force of all aspects of development in China," Sharaf said in a recent interview with Xinhua.

China's success serves the interests of the whole world and the CPC has offered the world a different government system, from which developing countries could learn, he said.

Sharaf first visited China in 2005, and between 2014 and 2019 he visited China over 30 times, during which he was deeply impressed by the Chinese people.

The CPC members he met at the time were proud of the country's achievements and development, Sharaf said.

Sharaf said he learned from his over 30 visits to China that "'Putting People First' broadened people's support for and loyalty to the party's leadership."

Railway crew perform aboard a bullet train running for trial along the Dali-Baoshan section of the Dali-Ruili Railway in southwest China's Yunnan Province, July 19, 2022. (Xinhua/Jiang Wenyao)

Sharaf said he is impressed by China's economic, social and cultural achievements along with combating poverty and corruption, and improving the people's health and welfare conditions, adding that opening-up to the world is a successful policy of China at the international level.

The Belt and Road Initiative is a vivid illustration of the policy of opening up and also serves as a platform promoting multilateralism and globalization, and expanding the scope of international cooperation, he said.

In recent years, he said, the construction of its New Suez Canal economic corridor as well as transportation, energy, and other projects are examples of cooperation between Egypt and China, which has created a lot of job opportunities and enhanced economic development in the north African country.

"The two countries have a promising prospect for cooperation," he said.