The Communist Party of China (CPC) and World Political Parties Summit was held this afternoon via videoconference and was attended by some 500 leaders of political parties as well as organisations from more than 160 countries. The Summit, organised by China, aimed to strengthen exchanges and mutual learning from governance experiences between the CPC and political parties worldwide, and to jointly respond to challenges brought by changes unseen in a century, including the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Prime Minister and leader of the Mouvement Socialiste Militant, Mr Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, Ministers, Members of Parliament, and members of the Party participated in the Summit in Port- Louis. The Chargé d’Affaires of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China, Mr Gong Yufeng, was also present on this occasion.
The theme chosen for the Summit was ‘For the People’s Wellbeing: The Responsibility of Political Parties’ and the event also coincided with the celebrations of the 100th anniversary of the CPC.
In a pre-recorded message posted on the Summit website, Prime Minister Jugnauth commended the President of the People’s Republic of China and Secretary-General of the CPC, Mr Xi Jinping, for the invitation to participate in the Summit and congratulated the CPC on its 100th anniversary. This invitation, he highlighted, confirms the mutual willingness to constantly strengthen the existing ties of friendship and cooperation.
He underscored that, with the establishment of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, the CPC unwaveringly led the Chinese people towards economic and social progress, and today, China stands as the second largest economy of the World. This is the result of strong leadership, vanguard vision, hard work, discipline and tenacity. It is therefore unsurprising that China has been able to contain the COVID-19 pandemic on its soil.
China, stressed the Prime Minister, remains at the forefront of World efforts to develop and supply effective vaccines and assist other countries in the fight against the deadly coronavirus. He seized this opportunity to thank President Xi Jinping and the Chinese Government for conveying medical supplies to Mauritius amid the pandemic, and for favourably responding to Mauritius’ request for Sinopharm vaccines.
According to him, in these trying times, the fate of the people, their immediate concerns, their purchasing power and overall well-being should retain Governments’ full attention. Reviving the economies, building resilience and putting together the right strategies and policies to trigger sustainable growth are the predicaments for ensuring the well-being of our people and our nations, he added.
The Prime Minister also stated that, apart from investing in the preparedness of our health services to face extreme sanitary situations after lessons learned from the pandemic, there is a need to focus on food security, environmental protection, renewable energy, social empowerment, distant learning and working, and smart IT driven activities.
Furthermore, Mr Jugnauth thanked the People’s Republic of China for its vote in favour of the United Nations General Assembly Resolution 73/295 of May 2019, reaffirming the conclusions of the International Court of Justice that the Chagos Archipelago is an integral part of Mauritius and that the United Kingdom’s purported detachment of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius was a violation of international law. Mauritius continues to rely on friendly countries like China to pursue its efforts towards completing its decolonisation process.
He underscored that Mauritius deeply values its excellent relations with China, before pointing out that China greatly contributes to the local socio-economic development. He also expressed his belief that the ties between the two countries will further deepen in the future.
As for the Chinese President Xi Jinping, he underlined that particular attention must be given to impoverished countries and people as development is the right of all countries around the globe. He stressed that in order to face modern challenges, there is a need for every country to collaborate, share experiences and work collectively.
According to him, despite some hurdles, economic globalisation is still moving forward with great impetus. The trend towards opening up and cooperation remains unchanged. China is ready to enhance communication with other countries and steer economic globalisation towards greater openness, inclusiveness, balance and win-win results, he added.
Several Heads of State and leaders also intervened during the Summit.