The Permanent Mission of the People's Republic of China to the United Nations held the launch meeting for the Group of Friends of Global Development Initiative (GDI) on Thursday, which marked its official establishment.

The GDI proposed by President Xi Jinping calls for greater international synergy to speed up the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and achieve stronger, greener and healthier global development, said Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the UN, who hosted the meeting.

The initiative is committed to practicing true multilateralism, putting people front and center, fully implementing the 2030 Agenda, and realizing the aspiration of all people for a better life, said Zhang. "The initiative is undoubtedly highly relevant and has a far-reaching impact," he said.

Zhang highlighted that since its introduction, the GDI has been warmly received by the international community. Nearly 100 countries and many international organizations, including the UN, have expressed their support.

The UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, Under-Secretary-General Liu Zhenmin, Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser on Africa to the Secretary-General Cristina Duarte, Associate Administrator of UNDP Usha Rao-Monari, Deputy Executive Director of UN Women Anita Bhatia and more than 20 heads of UN agencies participated and delivered remarks.

Delegates from more than 100 countries joined the meeting, including more than 80 ambassadors. They spoke highly of the GDI, expressing strong support and a willingness to join the Group of Friends.

Amina Mohammed said that the UN welcomes and supports the GDI and believes that it will help ensure the world keep the promise of "leaving no one behind". She also mentioned that the GDI "shows China's continued commitment to supporting the SDGs and looked forward to working practically with the Group of Friends".

Ambassadors agreed that the GDI is "a clear demonstration of China's firm commitment to multilateralism and the 2030 Agenda. It reflects the leading role of China in international development cooperation as well as the general call by developing countries for common development."

"China looks forward to working with all parties to implement the GDI, together seize opportunities and address challenges, in order to achieve the following four goals," Zhang said.

The first goal is reprioritizing development, he said. "The GDI prioritizes development and promotes the international community to place development at the core of the global macro policy framework and will provide stronger and more targeted support to developing countries," Zhang said.

He said that the GDI, with a commitment to people-centered development, aims to protect and promote human rights, especially the right to subsistence and development of all people, including women, children and other vulnerable groups. "It will surely make an important contribution to the international human rights cause," Zhang said.

Second objective is to renew commitments to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Zhang said. The GDI calls on all parties to strengthen political commitment to SDGs, starting with addressing the most pressing issues facing developing countries, he said.

"It will lead to the achievement of all 17 SDGs through priority areas, serve as an engine to speed up the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, and make positive contribution to the overall achievement of the SDGs," Zhang added.

Third is revitalizing global partnerships, Zhang said. The envoy emphasized that the GDI upholds the spirit of openness and inclusiveness. It is open to all countries, and welcomes the participation of governments, businesses, academia and civil society.

"It will promote consensus-building and synergy in the UN and other multilateral cooperation processes and strengthen the global partnership for development. China is ready to strengthen strategic alignment with all parties, heed useful suggestions and will not create any kind of small circles," he said.

Fourth is reactivating development cooperation, Zhang said. The GDI calls for mobilizing more international resources to offer support for global development, especially priority targets of developing countries.

"It will help boost North-South Cooperation, South-South Cooperation and triangular cooperation. The initiative follows the principle of extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits, striving for win-win cooperation and common development," he said.

The establishment of the Group of Friends aims to seek greater complementarity between the GDI and the 2030 Agenda, support the UN's work in development and help developing countries fight the pandemic and implement the 2030 Agenda, Zhang said.

The group will focus its work on strengthening policy dialogue, sharing best practices and promoting practical cooperation, he said.

"China looks forward to working with all parties to continuously improve the group's mechanism and deepen cooperation in key areas, so that we can together build the group into an effective platform for exchanging experience, enhancing cooperation and seeking common development," he said.

In the platform of the Group of Friends, they looked forward to strengthening communication and cooperation with China in the GDI priority areas, to inject fresh political momentum into global efforts on pandemic response, post-pandemic recovery and realization of the SDGs.

"Moving forward, China will deepen exchange and cooperation with the members of the Group of Friends, UN agencies and related parties, while strengthening policy dialogue, sharing best practices and undertaking practical projects. China will strive to achieve concrete outcomes that help countries achieve common, transformative and green development and to build a community with a shared future for mankind," Zhang said during a press conference after the meeting.

The Group of Friends is an informal cooperation mechanism to exchange views and share best practices on realizing SDGs, contribute to global development partnerships and accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, according to a news release by the Permanent Mission of China.