China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is an economic framework developed to increase connectivity between China and over 100 countries and international organizations, based on the ancient Silk Road land and maritime routes. The BRI aims to link different regions through infrastructure construction, transport and economic corridors and by bridging China with the rest of the world both physically, financially, digitally and socially. UNDP and the People’s Republic of China signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on cooperation on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in September 2016. The MOU outlined a strategic cooperation framework to enhance collaboration between UNDP and the Chinese government for the implementation of the BRI and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

China’s first ever UN-led open design challenge concluded today in Beijing’s 798 Art District, with 10 finalists showcasing innovative tech solutions designed to find solutions for pressing development challenges in China.

In the fall of 2013, China introduced the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to connect countries in Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Europe to promote more effective economic cooperation, which could benefit nearly four billion people in emerging economies in these regions.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and ofo, a Beijing-based start-up company that has become the world’s first and largest bike sharing platform, are joining forces to raise public awareness about climate change.

The Bill China Cannot Afford: Health Economic and Social Costs of China’s Tobacco Epidemic is a groundbreaking report co-authored by the World Health Organization (WHO) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The report, launched today, explores the current health, social and economic costs of tobacco on China’s development, and outlines the tobacco control measures that could avert many millions of deaths.

Picture Story- Hawa Adams is a vegetable farmer in Tamalgu, Ghana. Hawa lives with her husband and eight children. She complements her income through a pilot demonstration initiative together with UNDP and a local NGO, New Energy. Over the past two years, she and 77 other families in the community have been testing enhanced agriculture production methods using drip- and regular irrigation.

Support for industrialization in Africa received a boost this week with the launch of the Made in Africa Initiative (MIAI) Senior Advisory Board, an initiative that will create a strategic network of top development leaders’ minds to help facilitate the sustainable development of industrialization and economic transformation in Africa by drawing experiences from China and other emerging economies, in line with targets set out by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

To commemorate the World Earth Day, the United Nations Development Programme in China (UNDP China) launched the " 2030 Global Goals · Original Songwriting Contest”. Jointly initiated by the UNDP China and Echo, an innovative music platform, this campaign aims to bring to attention and stimulate action among the public on implementing the 2030 Agenda with its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

To raise public awareness on the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development and help China reach the goals and targets set forth by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) China today launched its Massive Open Online Course on Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development Goals (UNDP SDG MOOC) developed in cooperation with NetEase Media, as the first knowledge product to combine the global Agenda and China’s current situation.

The Smart Cities and Social Governance: Guide to Participatory Indicator Development is the product of a year-long project in the Bihai and Huizhan Neighbourhoods in Guiyang. The project engaged local residents in setting community priorities, and created a multistakeholder process to enlist input from experts and government officials in establishing a set of indicators that can track those priorities using available data.

China’s announcement of a total energy consumption cap of 5 tons of coal equivalent comes after the success of the 12th Five-Year Plan from an energy perspective, in which energy and carbon targets were met and surpassed. Between 2011 and the end of 2015, energy intensity fell by 18.2% and carbon intensity declined 20%. These declines are due in large part to the drop in coal consumption: down 3.7% in 2015, following a 2.9% decrease in 2014. The total from all sources of energy in 2015 was 4.3 billion tons of coal equivalent, an increase of less than 1% from the previous year. This markedly slowed consumption, coupled with the decline in heavy industry, suggests that achieving a 5 billion metric ton energy cap will not be challenging.

Endosulfan is an insecticide that has been phasing out globally due to its acute toxicity, potential for bioaccumulation, and its role as an endocrine disrupter that can cause cancerous tumors, birth defects, and other developmental disorders. Because of its threats to human health and the environment, a global ban on the manufacture and use of endosulfan was negotiated under the Stockholm Convention in April 2011.

By Nicholas Rosellini: Pursuing protectionism is like locking oneself in a dark room,” Chinese President Xi Jinping warned the assembled leaders at the World Economic Forum earlier this year. “While wind and rain may be kept outside, that dark room will also block light and air.”