9-29-08, 10:12 am

Since the foundation of the People’s Republic of China sixty years ago, on October 1st, 1949, the economy of this nation, under the direction Chinese Communist Party, has become a model of prosperity.

This Asian country has turned into a key driving force for the planet’s economic development. For example, from 1979 to 2007, it registered an annual economic growth of 9.8 percent, which is 6.8 percent higher than the world average; and its contribution to the global economy increased from 2.3 percent in 1978 to 14.5 percent in 2006, only behind the United States.

Thanks to its enormous development, China plays an important role in the main international markets and its influence increases by the day. For many experts, its economic success is almost a miracle in Asia and the world.

In this regard, during an exclusive interview with the Cuban News Agency, the Chinese Ambassador to Havana, Zhao Rongxian, said, “The Chinese people have chosen the path of Socialism because we believe that it is the most convenient and advisable one as it responds to the needs of the historical process of China. Only Socialism can save and promote its development. Our goal is to build a prosperous, civilized, democratic and harmonious country.”

And, indeed, the Chinese people have plenty of reasons to celebrate when we look back at the past six decades of this country, the most populated of the planet with more than 1.3 billion inhabitants, and the fourth regarding territorial extension.

During the past sixty years, what used to be a poor and backward nation has become a prosperous and powerful country, respected by the main western capitalist powers.

Ambassador Rongxian explained that after the foundation of the People’s Republic of China, during the 1949-1980 period, they went from a planned economy to a process of opening-up and reform that allowed them to establish a so-called market socialist economy.

“We believe that this system can revitalize and bring new dynamics to the economy and the social and economic development of the country,” he stressed.

After recalling the existence of active foreign forces against a prosperous and powerful China, the diplomat added that the strategic program designed in the early 1980s until the year 2050 aims at transforming the highly populated socialist State into a country of middle development.

In fact, all expectations have been far exceeded and the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita quadrupled from 1980 to 2000. In this respect, Rongxian said that while the goal for 2020 is to reach $3,200 of income per capita, last year the figure was $3,000.

“We want a more comfortable society for our people and we are convinced that we are on the right track,” he added.

According to institutions of the Asian nation, China’s GDP in 2008 was 400 times higher than in 1952 and its economy was the fourth in the world (above Italy, France and the United Kingdom).

Meanwhile, the Chinese diplomat noted that the current world financial and economic crisis also affected the development of his country, which carried out a series of measures to make its economy more dynamic.

In this regard, he explained that the Chinese central government implemented a package of economic stimulation amounting to four trillion yuans ($584 billion) to promote domestic demand and to maintain a rapid and steady rise in the current context.

Rongxian stated that during the first half of the year, they reached an economic growth of 7.1 percent and they are convinced that they will finish 2009 with an annual growth of 8 percent.

Of course, we remain loyal to the principles of Marxism-Leninism, the socialist system and the leadership of the Communist Party with the people at the center of our attention.

From the Cuban News Agency