Hectare by hectare, district by district, China is developing from a contributor to a leader in terms of promoting green development.
Visiting Czech Deputy Prime Minister Richard Brabec said at the expo site that he was quite impressed by the green coverage ratio in China, voicing his admiration for the national afforestation campaign and greening cause China is undertaking.
Official data show that the forest coverage rate in China has increased by nearly 10 percentage points since the late 1970s. In 2018, China planted 7.07 million hectares of trees, and is now home to the world's largest man-made forest in scale.
"China is undertaking an eco-friendly economic transformation, and we can see the positive results from China's campaigns including air pollution control, forestation and fighting against dust storms and droughts," said Khalid Al-Hajeri, head of the Kuwaiti Green Line Environmental Group.
CONCERTED EFFORTS FOR GREEN FUTURE
As an old Chinese saying goes, "A single flower does not make spring." Realizing a beautiful society calls for more coordinated actions from every one of its members.
Talking about bilateral cooperation with China on green development, Brabec said the expectations are great while Richard Burn, British trade commissioner for China, said there are "huge opportunities" on the horizon.
"It is beneficial to make technologies from different countries and of different peoples complement each other in terms of coping with environmental challenges," said Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates to China Ali Obaid Al Dhaheri.
The ambassador's remarks agree with those of his Palestinian counterpart Fariz Mehdawi, who told Xinhua on Monday that it is very important for humankind that the Beijing Expo promote green development because "we have the same future, and the environmental issues are never one country's own issue."
In his keynote speech at the opening ceremony, President Xi said that concerted efforts are needed in dealing with global environmental issues such as climate change, marine pollution and biological protection.
The Beijing Expo that attracts horticulture and nature lovers is the right place to enjoy exchanges on green development.
Kuwait can learn from China's experience in dealing with environmental issues as China has advantages in research, science and technology, which are very important to Arabian countries, including Kuwait, Al-Hajeri said.
The demonstrating effect of a horticultural expo is "very powerful" because you can see theory put into practice, said Tim Briercliffe, secretary general of the International Association of Horticultural Producers.
"I think many people will come and see physically but it will also be broadcast through various media, reaching many people around the world, so the lessons from this expo will be shared very widely. Yes, it will make a difference definitely," he said.
(Xinhua reporters Wei Mengjia, Jiang Jie, Li Yan and Gai Boming also contributed to the story.)
