Essential to strike balance between speed, quality of growth: Jinping at BRICS Summit plenary session

Chinese President Xi Jinping chaired the BRICS Summit plenary session on 4 September morning and delivered an opening speech, in which he stressed on striking a balance between the speed of growth and quality of growth.

The focus needs to be on sustainable growth, the Chinese President said.

"It is important to strike a balance between the speed of growth and the quality and efficiency of growth. By implementing the 2030 sustainable development agenda, we have the opportunity to achieve balanced economic, social and environmental progress and bring about inter connected and inclusive development," he quoted.

Chinese President Jinping further said, "Though separated by mountains and oceans, BRICS countries have been closely bound by shared commitment to win-win cooperation."

Jinping added that China would contribute a sizeable amount to the NBD project preparation facility to support the business operation in the long-term development of the bank.

"I wish to announce here that China will launch the economic and technical cooperation plan for the BRICS countries. To facilitate policy exchange and practical cooperation in the economic and trade field, China will contribute 4 million US Dollars to the NBD project preparation facility to support the business operation in the long-term development of the bank. China will work with all parties to follow through on the outcome and consensus achieved in the past and make use of existing mechanism," Jinping said.

"The BRICS has travelled a glorious journey of one decade, though separated by mountains and oceans, our five countries have been bound by a shared commitment. We owe the rapid development to the BRICS cooperation to our adoption of a right approach and that is the key to the rapid development for the BRICS countries cooperation," he said.

"Guided by this approach, we have respected and supported each other in following the path of development suited to our respective national conditions. We have pushed forward economic, political and people to people cooperation in an open inclusive and spirit and we have worked with other emerging markets and developing countries to uphold international justice and equity and faster sound external environment."

"Past progress shows that BRICS cooperation has met our common need for development and is keeping with the history. Though we have different national conditions, we share the commitment to pursuing common development through partnership. This has enabled us to rise above differences and seek winning results. As the world goes under profound and complex changes, the BRICS cooperation has become more important. Our people expect us to jointly boost development and improve their well being; the international community expects us to make contribution to world peace and common development."

Xi Jingping hoped that the second decade of BRICS would be as successful as the first one.

Jinping added that they have launched the African regional centre of the new development bank, and have decided to set up the BRICS model e-porch network and have reached extensive agreement on taxation, ecommerce, local currency bond, public-private partnership and the network of financial institutions and services. Their practical cooperation has become more institutionalised and substantive and delivered a more tangible result, he added.

"We need to strengthen complimentary of our development strategy. Despite our differences in national condition, our five countries are in a similar stage of development and we share the same development goals. We all face an odious task in growing on the economy. Strengthening the complementarity of our development strategies will help bring out our comparative strengths in resources market and labor force and to release the growth potential of the five countries and the creativity of our three billion people opening up huge space for development," he said.

"We need to plan well at the macro level and take concrete actions in the key areas acting in the spirit of extensive consultation and shared benefits we need to identify those areas where our development policies and priorities converge and continue to work for the goal of connectivity in trade investment, currency and finance and infrastructure. With a focus on structural reform and sustainable developments, we need to expand our converging interest and share experience on innovation, entrepreneurship, industrial development and projection capacity to boost our respective economic development," he added.

Jinping said that the BRICS nations need to make economic globalisation open inclusive, balanced and beneficial to all, build and open an open world economy, support the multilateral trading regime and oppose protectionism.

"We need to advance the of global economic governance, increase the representation and voice of emerging market in developing countries and inject new impetus into the efforts to address the development gap between the north and the south and boost global growth," he said.

"We need to promote people-to-people exchange. The amity between the people holds the key to sound status state relations. Only with intensive care can the tree of friendship and cooperation grow luxuriant. Enhancing the exchange among our people, and seeing the spirit of partnership embraced by all is a worthy cause that deserves our enduring commitment. The job well done in this regard will help in BRICS cooperation vibrant," he added.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated, during his address, that trade and economy formed the foundation of the co-operation among the BRICS countries.

Appreciating thrust in people-to-people exchanges, Prime Minister Modi opined that such inter-mingling would consolidate our links and deepen our understanding.

The Prime Minister also urged an early creation of the BRICS rating agency to cater to the financing needs of sovereign and corporate entities of developing countries.

Along with the Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Secretary East Preeti Saran, and the High Commissioner of India to China, Vijay Gokhale were also present at the session. 

-ANI