On April 14, the Global South Youth Leaders Roundtable hosted by the All-China Youth Federation was held in Yinchuan, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. More than 60 representatives of youth organizations and young entrepreneurs from China and the five Central Asian countries were in attendance at Ningxia University to hold discussions under the theme of “Gathering Youth Strength and Joining Hands for Common Development”, building friendship, seeking cooperation and planning for future development.

Chen Peng, deputy director of the China International Youth Exchange Center, attended the event and delivered a speech, where he signified that the collective rise of the “Global South” marks the arrival of the world’s century-long change. As an important part of the “Global South”, Central Asia holds a unique strategic position in the international arena. As the vanguard of digital and intelligent transformation, young people should also serve as the drivers of digital technology, leaders of digital innovation, and pioneers of digital future. It is hoped that young friends could exchange practices and experiences extensively on digital technology, youth development, and high-quality development, consolidating the power of youth and driving the world forward.

Gong Xuefei, secretary of the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region Committee of the Communist Youth League, emphasized that Ningxia is one of the places where Chinese and Western civilizations meet on the ancient silk road. In recent years, Ningxia has devoted itself to the construction of the “Belt and Road” and sought international youth partnership, empowering and facilitating mutual understanding and mutually beneficial development among young people. This event not only brought international vision and youth wisdom to Ningxia again, but injected new impetus into deepening South-South cooperation. It is hoped that young people from China and Central Asia could share ideas through exchanges, build consensus through cooperation, and contribute to the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

Takhtar Boresov, youth policy advisor to the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of Kazakhstan and chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Union of Young Entrepreneurs, stressed that the cooperation between China and Central Asian countries is expanding from economy&trade to education, science and technology, and youth exchanges. Kazakhstan is vigorously developing digital economy and artificial intelligence, and encouraging young people to engage in technological entrepreneurship. A number of top Chinese universities have established branches in Kazakhstan, creating unique opportunities for promoting talent cultivation and scientific cooperation. He called on young people from Central Asia and China to enhance exchanges and mutual trust, and jointly create a bright future through sincere cooperation.

Zhao Xiaojia, vice president of Ningxia University, delivered a keynote speech titled “The History of Friendly Exchanges between China and Central Asia & South-South Cooperation in the New Era”, pointing out that the profound friendship established between China and Central Asian countries through the ancient silk road has laid a solid foundation for the ever-lasting friendship between the two, and provided a solid humanistic foundation for promoting higher-level South-South cooperation.

At the meeting, Chinese and foreign youth representatives had a heated discussion on the topics of “Digital Technology and Youth Development” and “Digital Technology and High-quality Development”.

Regarding the topic of “Digital Technology and Youth Development”, the attending representatives expressed the need to popularize digital technology, narrow regional differences, strengthen youth digital literacy education, and enhance young people’s understanding and application of artificial intelligence. Isram Kamolov, an information technology expert from the Youth Affairs Agency of Uzbekistan, indicated that efforts should be made to accelerate the construction of digital infrastructure, reduce technical costs, and enable young people in remote areas to share the fruits of digital development. Nursultan Bakashov, co-founder and operations director of the Kramer Artificial Intelligence project in Kyrgyzstan, highlighted that to equip themselves well for the future, young people should actively embrace artificial intelligence, regard it as a partner, and learn to collaborate with it efficiently.

Regarding the topic of “Digital Technology and High-quality Development”, the attending representatives emphasized the importance of digital platform construction and digital cooperation between countries. A commonly held view at the meeting is that digital cooperation can break down language and geographical limitations through construction of platforms, promoting the cross-border flow of resources, technologies and knowledge. The attendees believed that through this meeting, they not only reached a consensus on the importance of digital technology, but deepened their willingness to understand and cooperate with each other. Hoshgerdi Anagerdiyev, the head of Culture and Mass Media Communication Department of the Central Committee of the Magtymguly Pyragy Youth Organization in Turkmenistan, suggested building a cross-border AI platform to empower young people in cross-border exchanges and collaborations and promote the co-development of cultural mutual learning and digital economy. Sun Kang, head of China’s agricultural company Banmer, said: “When the yellow earth encounters the digital flow and old craftsmanship meets new technology, the mission of our generation of entrepreneurs lies not only in industry transformation, but in civilization inheritance.”

In June 2024, at the Conference Marking the 70th Anniversary of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, President Xi announced China’s support for the eight measures of Global South cooperation and launched the Global South Youth Leaders Program. This roundtable meeting is designed to implement this initiative by engaging in interchange of ideas with young leaders from the Global South countries to explore how digital technology can empower youth development, encouraging young people from all countries to take proactive actions for the implement of global development initiatives. (By Zhao Anqi/ China Youth Daily)