Xi's "development first" vision spurs Global South's shared growth

Chinese expert Li Guiqiang (L) gives instructions on vegetable cultivation at the China-Ethiopia Addis Ababa Agricultural Technology Demonstration and Training Center in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Aug. 20, 2025. (Xinhua/Han Xu)

BEIJING, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- At the SCO summit last week, Chinese President Xi Jinping called on countries to "stay committed to putting development first, and open up the prospects for shared prosperity."

Amid a turbulent and rapidly changing international landscape, development still faces severe challenges, and the road to prosperity for the Global South will not be straight.

"The Global South emerges for development and prospers through development. We should make ourselves the main driving force for common development," Xi said during the 2024 BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia.

For Xi, development has always been a priority. He sees it as "the master key to solving all problems," and has consistently called for countries worldwide to jointly pursue development and prosperity.

Xi has stressed repeatedly that no one should be left behind in the fight against poverty in China, and has led a formidable campaign that ended extreme poverty nationwide, which was hailed as "the greatest anti-poverty achievement in history."

His "leaving-no-one-behind" conviction also extends to his efforts to support poverty reduction and spur development across the Global South. "On the path to modernization, no one, and no country, should be left behind," Xi said.

Last week in Bishkek, Xi called for consolidating cooperation in both traditional and emerging fields, from trade, investment, connectivity and energy to artificial intelligence (AI), the digital economy and green industries.

An aerial photo taken on Oct. 22, 2025 shows wind turbines of De Aar Wind Power Project in De Aar, Northern Cape, South Africa. (Xinhua/Han Xu)

Responding to the Global South's aspirations for common development and modernization, Xi has proposed the Global Development Initiative (GDI), which marks its fifth anniversary this year.

In the last five years, the GDI has mobilized more than 23 billion U.S. dollars, provided support for over 1,800 "small and beautiful" livelihood projects, and sponsored training programs for more than 200,000 people in different professions.

Serik Korzhumbayev, editor-in-chief of the Delovoy Kazakhstan newspaper, said: "Under Xi's leadership, the concept of development has acquired a new international dimension and become part of a broader vision for humanity's shared future."