Vice Minister of Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) Li Jinzao stated at the Green Innovation Conference on Nov. 9, 2012 that the Chinese government is working hard to promote the building of ecological civilization and development of green energy. Looking ahead, China will promote global trade and investment in the area of green and low carbon field to push forward the sustainable development of the whole world.
Jointly organized by eight ministries including MOFCOM and NDRC, the conference featured Green Innovation and Low Carbon Development. The participants discussed the new opportunities brought forth by green development in the 12th Five-Year Plan period, exchanged of new concepts on green innovation and examined the new trend in the low carbon transformation of global economy and put forward new measures to strengthen the international cooperation on climate change.
Li noted that green development and low carbon transformation has become a major trend in the restructuring process of global economy. In the meantime, the Chinese government is actively promoting the buildup of ecological civilization to improve its capability on sustainable development. Since 2007, MOFCOM has worked with MEP and the Ministry of Science and Technology and created 17 national eco-industry parks based on the idea of circular economy, industrial ecology and the requirement of clean development. It played a positive role in accelerating the green renovation of the industrial parks.
Li mentioned that MOFCOM will promote global trade and investment in green development in the following five aspects:
First, promote the trade facilitation and free trade for environmental products. The Ministry will strengthen collaboration with all countries, enforce various meeting results, remove trade barriers and prevent green barrier in order to have more countries and companies benefit from the green development.
Second, attract domestic and international investors in China’s low carbon industry. Effort will be made to advance ecological development in various special economic zones, make favorable policy for investors to invest in green economy and green technology and take green industries, clean production and energy saving industries as the key areas for foreign investment.
Third, enhance energy conservation and emission reduction in the field of rational consumption and circulation. We will encourage sustainable consumption pattern, promote energy conservation and emission reduction in the field of circulation and draw upon the experience from developed countries. We will speed up the pace of building a full-fledged and advanced system for recovery and reuse of waste goods and improve the efficiency of recovery and dismantling of waste household appliances.
Fourth, promote international exchanges and cooperation in the field of green and low carbon development. We will improve the work mechanism on bilateral trade, carry out extensive international cooperation on human resources, capital, industrial alliance and innovation center and put more emphasis on the protection of intellectual property. We will also regulate carbon emissions trade and formulate technical standards to create a good environment for fair competition among domestic and foreign companies in green innovation.
Fifth, deepen south-south cooperation and jointly address to climate change. We will increase material aid and help countries concerned to establish weather forecast and alarming system and provide developing countries with practical technologies in agricultural drought resistance and water saving, sustainable forest management and monitoring of sea level rise. We will offer more training courses to promote joint sustainable development.