As a major contributor to global green growth, China has taken solid steps to advance its green development, Frank Rijsberman (the Netherlands), Director General of the Global Green Growth Institute, an intergovernmental organization, told Beijing Review reporter Tao Zihui in an exclusive interview. Edited excerpts of the interview follow:

Beijing Review: How has China's commitment to its dual carbon goal impacted its position in the global green economy?

Frank Rijsberman: China has gained quite a few advantages since President Xi Jinping announced in September 2020 that the country would strive to peak carbon emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060.

You can see that many industries and the energy sector are reorganizing.

The country is a leading producer of solar panels for renewable energy, a leading producer of batteries of electric vehicles, and even wind energy. All of these give China a big advantage to become a leader in the low-carbon green economy.

The commitment the president made is a profoundly serious one. But like other countries, the progress toward that commitment is still not enough. We need to rapidly accelerate the green transition, both in China and internationally.

How can China leverage its expertise in different fields to support the transition to a green, low-carbon economy in developing countries? What role can the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) play in this effort?

I think China is in a particularly good position [in the global green growth]. Other countries, like the U.S., are quite concerned about China's dominant position in, for example, solar panel manufacturing and in other areas. But so far, China has been exporting solar panels mainly to Europe and to the U.S., regions that have very good renewable energy subsidies.

There are big opportunities in developing countries, for example in Africa, where there is very little development, but a lot of potential. So just as China has supported countries with other infrastructure [projects] through the BRI, a China-proposed program to boost connectivity along and beyond the ancient Silk Road routes, I think the country could also help other countries accelerate this transition to a green, low-carbon economy through the BRI.

Take the example of electric vehicles. China was the first to have a really large-scale deployment of electric cars like those manufactured by Chinese automaker BYD (a best-selling electric vehicle brand in the domestic market).

Right now, we [the Global Green Growth Institute] are working with many member countries that all want to introduce electric buses. In 2022, we helped Mexico introduce its first 50 [electric] buses. So this is one example of a real opportunity for Chinese electric bus and battery manufacturers to scale up and explore the global market.

How do you evaluate China's achievements in its green economy?

We've already seen that China has made great efforts to create cleaner air or bluer skies, and air pollution has been declining. That shows people that there are very immediate, direct benefits to this ecological economy, to this green growth model.

The impact of not taking care of the environmental side of the economy has a huge impact on people.

There are already more than 20 million climate refugees, particularly in Africa, where people desperately need a more resilient economy. There are many good ways for China to work with Africa. Many of the natural resources come from Africa to China, and much of the technology and finance can come from China to support the green transition in Africa.

How can China's focus on a green economy create opportunities for collaboration with other countries?

Everybody talks about China's efforts to peak its carbon emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060.

Everybody is aware that it is a noticeably big task, as it is in other countries. But I definitely see that everybody is taking it very seriously.

We know that when people in China take these targets very seriously, then progress can be made very quickly. There is a lot of good technology, a lot of good research and development that has been done in the country.

Other countries are also making efforts to green their economies and believe they have strengths as well. I believe many would welcome the opportunity to partner with China in a "two-way street" kind of way.

As China continues to open up, it will probably create a more balanced economy where different partners can each develop their own strengths. 

Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon

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