携手消除贫困，共建美好未来
Working Together to Eradicate Poverty and Build a Better Future
陈晓东大使在南非2022年“地方政府峰会”上的讲话
Ambassador Chen Xiaodong’s Remarks at the Local Government Summit
2022年9月29日
29 September 2022
尊敬的联合执政和传统事务部德拉米尼·祖马部长，
女士们，先生们，朋友们，
Your Honorable Minister Dlamini Zuma of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Department of South Africa,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Dear friends,
大家好！很高兴同各位新老朋友再次相聚“云端”，共同出席地方政府峰会。本节讨论以“减贫”（The Building Blocks to Address Poverty）为主题，直击当下发展挑战，契合地方政府需要，具有很强现实意义。
Greetings to you all! I am delighted to join so many friends, both old and new, for the Local Government Summit via video link. With the theme of “The Building Blocks to Address Poverty”, this session is highly relevant to the needs of South African local governments, as it directly addresses the current development challenges.
贫困是人类社会的顽疾，消除贫困是人类梦寐以求的理想。中国拥有14亿人口，是世界上最大的发展中国家，曾长期饱受贫困问题困扰。中国共产党团结带领全体人民艰苦奋斗，特别是中共十八大以来，以习近平同志为核心的中共中央组织实施了人类历史上规模最大、力度最强的脱贫攻坚战，历史性地消灭了绝对贫困。
The elimination of poverty, which is a persistent problem in human society, is the shared aspiration of mankind. China, with a population of 1.4 billion, is the largest developing country in the world, and used to suffer from poverty for a long history.
Through a century of tenacious struggle, the CPC has rallied and led the Chinese people in accomplishing remarkable achievements in poverty reduction.
In particular, since the 18th CPC National Congress, the CPC Central Committee, with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core, has led the Chinese nation to fight the largest and most powerful battle against poverty in human history. As a result, the arduous task of eradicating absolute poverty has been completed.
按照世界银行标准，中国7.7亿农村贫困人口摆脱贫困，占同期全球减贫人口70%以上，提前10年实现《联合国2030年可持续发展议程》减贫目标。脱贫地区面貌焕然一新，贫困人口的收入和福利水平大幅提高。农村居民人均可支配收入从2013的约900美元增长到2020年的近2000美元，年均增长11.6%。贫困地区行路难、用电难、通信难、住房难、上学难、就医难……一个个难题逐一破解。
According to World Bank standards, China has lifted 770 million rural residents out of poverty, and contributed to more than 70% of global poverty reduction during this period, achieving the poverty reduction target of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development 10 years ahead of schedule.
Areas lifted out of poverty have taken on a new look, and the incomes and welfare of the poor have improved substantially. The per capita disposable income of rural residents has increased from about US$900 in 2013 to nearly US$2,000 by 2020, with an average annual growth rate of 11.6%.
In the past, the impoverished areas had little access to road, electricity, communication, housing, schooling and medical service. But step by step, all these difficulties have been solved one by one.
打赢脱贫攻坚战不仅是中华民族发展史上具有里程碑意义的大事件，也是人类减贫史乃至人类发展史上的奇迹。联合国秘书长古特雷斯表示，中国是为全球减贫作出最大贡献的国家，谱写了人类减贫历史的辉煌篇章，为世界减贫事业注入强大动能。
Winning the battle against poverty is not only a milestone in the history of the Chinese nation, but also a miracle in the history of human poverty reduction and development.
UN Secretary-General Guterres said that among all countries, China is one that has made the greatest contributions to the global cause of poverty reduction, writing a glorious chapter in human history, and injecting powerful momentum into the global campaign to eliminate poverty.
女士们，先生们，朋友们，
Ladies and gentlemen,
Dear friends,
中国立足自身国情，把握减贫规律，坚持以人民为中心，以精准脱贫为方略，构建了一整套行之有效的政策体系、工作体系、制度体系，走出了一条中国特色减贫道路，为全球减贫事业贡献了中国智慧、中国方案。中方愿分享自身经验，为南方探索符合自身国情的减贫路径提供参考。
Based on its own national conditions, and with a keen appreciation of the laws of poverty reduction, China has followed a people-centered approach and a targeted poverty reduction strategy.
We have established a complete set of effective policy, work and institutional systems, thus putting the nation on a path towards poverty eradication with Chinese characteristics, and contributing Chinese wisdom and solutions to the global cause of poverty reduction. China is ready to share its experience with South Africa, so that you can explore a poverty reduction path suited to your own national conditions.
一是空前重视，全力以赴开展减贫脱贫。为中国人民谋幸福、为中华民族谋复兴是中国共产党人的初心和使命。以习近平同志为核心的中共中央把贫困人口全部脱贫摆在治国理政的突出位置，作为全面建成小康社会、实现第一个百年奋斗目标的底线任务和标志性指标，纳入党的最高行动纲领和政府经济社会发展五年规划，脱贫攻坚上升为国家意志、国家战略、国家行动。
First, China attaches unprecedented importance to poverty reduction with full efforts. It is the original aspiration and mission of the CPC to work for the happiness of the Chinese people and the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
The CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as its core has placed the total eradication of poverty in a prominent position in the governance of the country, regarded it as a key task and indicator for realizing the First Centenary Goal of building a moderately prosperous society, and incorporated it in the Party’s ultimate guide to action and the government’s five-year plan for economic and social development. As a result, it has become a national will, strategy and action to realize poverty alleviation.
习近平总书记说，“脱贫攻坚是我心里最牵挂的一件大事”。他亲自指挥、亲自部署、亲自督战，过去几年间7次主持召开中央扶贫工作座谈会，50多次调研扶贫工作，走遍全国14个集中连片特困地区，极大鼓舞了贫困群众脱贫致富的信心和决心。在“中央统筹、省负总责、市县抓落实”的管理体制下，中西部22个省份党政主要负责同志向中央签署责任书、立下军令状，呈现省市县乡村五级书记一起抓的壮观场景。大力充实扶贫干部队伍，向每个贫困村选派第一书记和驻村工作队。截至2020年底，累计选派25.5万个驻村工作队、300多万名第一书记和驻村干部。坚持发挥政府投入的主体和主导作用，宁肯少上几个大项目，也优先保障脱贫攻坚资金投入。政府各级财政专项扶贫资金累计投入近2500亿美元，其中中央财政累计投入约1000亿美元。
General Secretary Xi Jinping said that poverty eradication is the first thing on his mind. He has personally taken charge, made plans, and directed the battle against poverty. Over the past few years, he has presided over seven seminars on poverty elimination. He has made over 50 fact-finding trips. He has visited every one of the 14 contiguous poor areas across the country, building up people’s confidence, determination and belief that they can work their way out of poverty.
We have put in place a mechanism whereby the central government makes overall plans, provincial-level governments take overall responsibility, and city and county governments ensure implementation. The leading officials of 22 provinces in central and western China signed written pledges to the Party Central Committee, and Party secretaries at the five administrative levels of province, city, county, township and village have worked towards the same goal in a spectacular manner.
China has rallied a strong workforce of grassroots officials dedicated to poverty alleviation, and dispatched first secretaries and resident working teams to each and every poor village. As of the end of 2020, 255,000 resident teams and more than 3 million officials had been dispatched as first secretaries and resident officials to poor villages.
In terms of financial support, government input constitutes the major part for supporting poverty alleviation. The government would rather cut down on the number of major projects in favor of investment in poverty elimination. The central, provincial, prefecture, and county governments have earmarked a total of nearly US$250 billion for poverty alleviation, of which around US$100 billion came from the central government.
二是大力发展特色产业，变输血为造血。发展产业是脱贫致富最直接、最有效的办法，也是增强贫困地区造血功能、帮助贫困群众就地就业的长远之计。中国支持引导贫困地区因地制宜发展特色产业，鼓励支持电商扶贫、光伏扶贫、旅游扶贫等新业态新产业发展。累计投入资金30多亿美元，建成各类产业基地超过30万个，打造特色农产品品牌1.2万个，产业帮扶政策覆盖99%的贫困户。随着“互联网+”深入发展，农村电商成为精准扶贫的重要抓手。2020年网上购物节，天猫商城——中国的Takealot为52个未摘帽贫困县38万商家开设了农产品消费扶贫专区，举办110万场助农直播带货，有10万农民主播参与其中，天猫助销初级农产品超800多亿美元。
Second, the Chinese government has provided great support for impoverished areas to develop industries with distinctive local features so as to enable them to realize self-reliant development.
Poverty alleviation through economic development is the most direct and effective method. It is also the fundamental way to give poor areas the capacity for independent development and help the poor find employment locally.
With this in mind, China has supported and guided poor areas in developing economic activities geared to their available resources, and encouraged poverty alleviation through new forms of business and new industries such as e-commerce, photovoltaic (PV) power generation and tourism.
China has invested a total of more than US$3 billion, built more than 300,000 industrial bases of various types, created 12,000 local agriproduct brands, and covered 99% of poor households with industry support policies.
With the development of “Internet Plus”, e-commerce has become a useful tool for targeted poverty alleviation in rural areas.
During the 2020 Online Shopping Festival, Tmall, the Chinese equivalent of Takealot, opened a special zone for agricultural products for 380,000 sellers from 52 poor counties, and held 1.1 million live-streaming events to enable 100,000 farmers promote their agriproducts on the platform. In the end, more than US$80 billion worth of primary agricultural products were sold out.
三是广泛动员，汇聚各方合力。扶贫减贫是艰巨复杂的综合系统工程，零敲碎打、单兵突进难有成效。中国发挥政府、地方、社会、企业各方作用，构建东西协作、定点扶贫、行业扶贫互为补充、全社会共同参与的扶贫体系。习近平总书记在福建工作期间，亲自部署福建对口帮扶宁夏，11批援宁工作队和8万闽商从东南沿海奔赴大西北，极大改变了宁夏发展面貌。在戈壁滩上兴建的闽宁村年人均收入由不足75美元跃升到2200多美元，当年的“干沙滩”变成名副其实的“金沙滩”。在西南边陲贵州省丹寨县山区，中国地产企业万达集团以当地苗族、侗族非物质文化遗产为内核，打造集“吃、住、游、购、教”为一体的丹寨万达小镇精品文旅综合体，开业五年游客超过3000万，被《孤独星球》列入2020全球十佳旅行地名单。
Third, the Chinese government has galvanized efforts of all parties. Poverty alleviation and reduction is an arduous and systematic project. It is difficult to achieve fruitful results in piecemeal and single-soldier approaches.
China has given full play to the role of the government, localities, society and enterprises in building a poverty alleviation system featuring collaboration between the eastern and western regions, assistance for targeted poor areas, sector-specific programs, and participation of the whole society.
While working as the governor of Fujian province in the 1990s, President Xi personally deployed paired-assistance for Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. Eleven task forces and 80,000 Fujian businessmen went from the southeast coast province to the northwest part of the country, to help with the development of Ningxia.
The annual per capita income of Minning Village built on the Gobi Desert jumped from less than US$75 to more than US$2,200, and the “dry beach” in those days became a “golden beach” worthy of the name.
In Danzhai county of Guizhou province, a mountainous area of southwest China, Wanda group, a Chinese real estate enterprise, turned the intangible cultural heritage of local Miao and Dong ethic groups into a booming tourism industry that provides a wide range of services, including food, accommodation, traveling, shopping, and education.
In the following five years, the county attracted more than 30 million tourists, and was included in the list of the world’s top ten travel destinations in 2020 by Lonely Planet.
四是加大教育投入，阻断贫困代际传递。治贫先治愚，扶贫先扶智，教育是改变贫困命运的金钥匙。中国政府综合施策，改善贫困地区就学条件，提升学校、师资、资助各方面保障，20多万名义务教育阶段的贫困家庭辍学学生全部返校就读，全面保障适龄少年儿童义务教育。对贫困地区实施定向招生、职教脱贫、学生就业等倾斜政策。800多万贫困家庭初高中毕业生接受职业教育培训，目前职业院校70%以上的学生来自农村。通过助学金等方式帮助514万名贫困家庭学生接受高等教育，重点高校定向招收农村和贫困地区学生70多万人。此外，激励与引导并举，采用生产奖励、劳务补助、以工代赈、小额贷款等激励手段，让贫困群众尝到勤劳致富的甜头，激发脱贫的内生动力。
Fourth, China has increased investment in education to prevent poverty from passing from one generation to another. Poverty alleviation begins with intelligence cultivation. And education is the key to change the fate of the poor.
The Chinese government has taken comprehensive measures to improve education in poverty-stricken areas, provide them with schools, teachers, and financial assistance. More than 200,000 students from poor families who had dropped out of compulsory education have all returned to school. The government has made sure that all school-age children have access to compulsory education.
Preferential policies are taken for impoverished areas, such as targeted enrollment, vocational education, and student employment. More than 8 million middle and high school graduates from poor families have received vocational education and training.
At present, more than 70% of students in vocational colleges are from rural areas. A total of 5.14 million students from poor families were offered grants to pay for higher education. Key universities have enrolled more than 700,000 students from rural and poverty-stricken areas.
In addition, the government provides incentives such as production bonus, labor subsidies, job opportunities and micro-loans, so as to encourage people to increase income and improve livelihood through hard work.
五是社保兜底，防止因病致贫返贫。对于特殊贫困群体，需要特殊保障政策来兜底，做到“应保尽保”。近2000万贫困群众享受低保和特困救助供养，2400多万困难和重度残疾人拿到生活和护理补贴。农村低保标准从2012年每人每年310美元提高到2020年约900美元，增长188.3%。政府大力开展健康扶贫工程，加大对县乡村三级卫生机构投入，组织1007家城市大医院与1172家县医院结对帮扶，累计派出超过11.8万人次医务人员。建立完善基本医疗保险、大病保险、医疗救助三重保障机制，实行县域内住院“先诊疗、后付费”，贫困人口大病医疗费用报销比例提至约90%，做到“小病没负担，大病有兜底”。
Fifth, the Chinese government provides subsistence allowances for those unable to shake off poverty through their own efforts due to illness. For the most vulnerable groups, special policies are needed to ensure that we provide support and assistance to everyone who needs it.
Nearly 20 million people have received subsistence allowances or special aid for people living in extreme poverty. More than 24 million people with disabilities have received subsidies to help ease their financial difficulties.
The per capita annual subsistence allowances in rural areas had grown from US$310 in 2012 to US$900 in 2020, an increase of 188.3%.
The Chinese government has made great efforts to improve healthcare service to the poor, increase investment in the three-tier healthcare system at village, township and county levels, mobilized 1,007 large urban hospitals to provide paired-assistance to 1,172 county hospitals, and dispatched more than 118,000 medical personnel in total.
All poverty-stricken populations now have access to basic medical insurance, critical illness insurance, and medical assistance. Rural poverty-stricken inpatients enjoy a policy of “treatment before payment” at county-level hospitals, and a reimbursement rate of 90% for severe illness treatment.
With these measures in place, people can easily afford to pay medical treatment for minor disease, and need not to worry if they have more severe illness.
女士们，先生们，朋友们，
Ladies and gentlemen,
Dear friends,
中南两国有着“同志加兄弟”的特殊友好关系，中国始终关注和支持南非改善民生、消除贫困等工作。近年来，中国通过物资、现汇、成套项目、人力资源培训等方式，同南非深入开展发展合作。中国愿同南方一道，相互交流借鉴，继续助力南减贫事业，推动中南中非命运共同体走深走实。
China and South Africa have a special friendly relationship of “comradeship plus brotherhood”. China has always supported South Africa’s efforts to improve people’s livelihood and eliminate poverty.
In recent years, China has carried out in-depth development cooperation with South Africa by providing materials, aid in cash, full set of projects, and human resources training. China will work with South Africa to strengthen exchanges and learn from each other. We will continue to support South Africa’s poverty alleviation cause, and add more substance to the China-South Africa and China-Africa community with a shared future.
一要加强减贫经验交流。中国政府愿同南非政府加强沟通，在后疫情时代通过专家团组互访、举办智库论坛、组织人员培训、开展实地走访等多种形式共享减贫经验，深化双方在农业、卫生、交通、水资源利用等领域技术合作。
First, we can strengthen the exchange of experience in poverty reduction. The Chinese government is ready to enhance communication with the South African government to share poverty reduction experience in various forms such as mutual visits of expert groups, think tank forums, personnel training, and field visits in the post-pandemic era. We can also deepen technical cooperation in agriculture, health, transportation, water resource utilization and other fields.
二要开展减贫试点合作。作为中非合作论坛“九项工程”在南非的重点民生项目，援南扶贫示范村项目建设正积极推进，将同南方共同打造适合南非国情、可复制可推广的乡村减贫样板工程。
Second, we can carry out pilot cooperation in poverty reduction. As a key livelihood project of the “Nine Programs” of FOCAC in South Africa, the project of a pilot village for cooperation on poverty reduction is well underway. We will jointly build it as a model project that is suitable for South Africa’s national conditions and can be replicated and promoted.
三要发挥好友好省市作用。南非是与中国建立友好省市最多的撒南非洲国家。我们可以将减贫合作列为中南地方政府合作优先事项，利用友城优势资源，打造契合南非实际需要的减贫项目。
Third, we can take advantage of the sister province and sister city relationship the two sides have forged over the years. South Africa has more sister provinces and cities with China than any other sub-Saharan African countries. We can make poverty reduction cooperation a priority between local governments of two sides, and harness the advantageous resources of sister cities to launch poverty reduction projects that meet the actual needs of South Africa.
四要充分调动各界力量。我们愿推动包括在南中资企业在内的中国企业等社会力量同南开展对口、定点帮扶，通过发展产业、技能培训、物资援助等方式助力减贫事业。
Fourth, we can encourage the Chinese business community in South Africa to play an active role in our poverty reduction cooperation. We will encourage Chinese enterprises in South Africa to provide paired assistance, and contribute to the cause of poverty reduction through industry development, skill training and material assistance.
女士们，先生们，朋友们，
Ladies and gentlemen,
Dear friends,
中国的脱贫实践印证了南非前总统曼德拉所言，“贫困并不是自然而然发生的，而是人为的，因而是能够通过人类行动加以战胜和消除的。”让我们吹响共同发展的“集结号”，携手战胜和消除绝对贫困，共创没有贫困、没有饥饿、共同发展、充满希望的美好明天！
China’s poverty alleviation practice confirms what former South African President Mandela said: “Poverty is not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings.”
Let us work together for common development, join hands to defeat and eradicate absolute poverty, and create a bright future that replaces poverty and hunger with common development and hope!