Planning ahead: a key towards China's common prosperity

Source:CCTV.com 12-03-23 01:37 Updated BJT
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Alessandro Golombiewski Teixeira, former Minister of Tourism of Brazil, is currently a professor at the School of Public Policy and Management, Tsinghua University. During China's 2023 "Two Sessions," the annual meetings of China's top legislature and political advisory bodies, he was interviewed with CCTV.com and shared his views on common prosperity and Chinese modernization.

CCTV.com: As the key annual political meetings, what is the special significance of China's 2023 "Two Sessions"?

Teixeira: The 2023 "Two Sessions" are very important as they are the first after China has eased the COVID defense systems and people are back to normal life after 3 years; Second, the world has a lot of challenges and China is in the center of the world system. When you address questions in the "Two Sessions," you are not addressing only internal questions for China, but the addressing global issues that have big impacts; China will have new leadership and everybody is expecting to see who is going to be the premier, who is going to be the person to conduct the government. That's the third element which makes the "Two Sessions" different than before; Finally, this year, we have recovery of the world economy, we have issues with climate change. We have post COVID-19 challenges. China is a leading economy and needs to deal with the challenges.

CCTV.com: The "Two Sessions" this year carry extra weight and common prosperity is a key topic. What's your understanding of China's common prosperity?

Teixeira: China went through very difficult times of the starvation of the population in history. It understands better the importance of improving the life quality of its people. Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, China has put at the center of the policies to improve people's life. The Communist Party of China (CPC) has been striving for raising people's life quality in income, education and law.

China's prosperity can be demonstrated in different aspects such as economy and politics. It is not only economic prosperity, but a social prosperity and cultural prosperity. It is a concept that China shares with the world. Meanwhile, it is a prosperity for everyone, for different ethnic groups. 

CCTV.com: To achieve the target, what are the challenges and opportunities that China is facing?

Teixeira: When a society has achieved common prosperity, they achieve equilibrium and peace. China has a leadership in the governance system and China plans ahead. China can set a target 25 or 30 years from now and achieve that in 20 years, 25 years. That's a great advantage. 

There are challenges, but they are not challenges facing China only, they are global challenges, for example, the COVID-19. So you cannot cut China off anymore from the rest of the world. China has a more important role to play in the world.

CCTV.com: China's road to common prosperity is closely linked with Chinese modernization. Compared with the modernization process in the West, what are the main characteristics of Chinese modernization?

Teixeira: In western culture, modernization means the majority of economic modernization, a modern infrastructure, a modern economy. In China, "modernization" means much more than that. It means the modernization of institutions, education, and of the Chinese political system. You cannot achieve common prosperity if you don't modernize institutions, education, governance.

The opinions don't necessarily reflect those of CCTV.com.

Editor: Zhoufujing
12-03-23 01:37 BJT
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