C20:The Voice of Civil Society

By staff reporter CHEN JING

ECHOING the G20 Hangzhou Summit， the Civil Society 20（C20）， one of the five G20 outreach groups， opened on July 5， 2016 in Qingdao， Shandong Province. Focusing on “poverty eradication， green development， and innovation： the role of civil society，” this years C20 was attended by 219 representatives from 54 countries.

Voices from Civil Society

The C20 is a key platform for representatives of civil society to give advice and suggestions pertinent to the theme of the G20 Summit to governments and broader society. Launched in 2013， the C20 has convened successively in Moscow （June 2013）， Melbourne （June 2014）， and Istanbul （September 2015）. The C20 leads engagement with the G20 on behalf of international civil society. It proactively participates in discussions on the global economy and the making of relevant policies by contributing the expertise and knowledge of civil society.

The Chinese government has attached great importance to the C20 this year. In his message of congratulations， Chinese President Xi Jinping said： “Civil society organizations play an important role in promoting civic participation in public affairs as well as economic and social development of their own countries. The Chinese government supports the participation of Chinese social organizations in economic and social development of the country. In the same vein， the Chinese government welcomes the conduct of friendly exchanges and cooperation in China by foreign non-governmental organizations. Efforts are being made to facilitate their operation in China and protect their legitimate rights and interests through creating an enabling legislative environment.”

Xi also remarked： “Recent years have witnessed the increasing importance of C20 in promoting positive interactions between governments and civil society and in facilitating global economic governance through listening to the voices of and building consensus across society.” President Xi expressed the hope that participants would pool wisdom and make concerted efforts towards a positive outcome for the C20 China 2016.

State Councilor Yang Jiechi addressed the opening ceremony of the C20， saying that the theme of the event was in accordance with that of the upcoming G20 Summit， so demonstrating the close attention that civil society pays to these fields. The Chinese government has worked actively on eradicating poverty， advocating green development， and innovation， and has made much headway in those fields. China will continue to encourage both domestic and international NGOs to enhance exchanges， coordination， and cooperation in these areas.

Outcome Document

The C20 China 2016 communiquéwas adopted as the outcome document of the meeting. The communiqué collects suggestions and ideas from civil organizations in three aspects， namely， poverty eradication and shared development， unity of knowing and doing in green development， and championing the future through innovation. Participants at the meeting set great store by the longterm trend of the Chinese economy in anticipation of its success， development， and leading role in creating new growth engines and propelling a stable recovery and sustainable development of the world economy， primarily through the Belt and Road Initiative.

The Chinese organizers have summarized 28 suggestions for poverty eradication， green development， and innovation. The China part also calls on the G20 Summit， through policy， fiscal input， and institutional guarantee， to place greater emphasis on the role of civil society. This will enable it to promote the development of world economy and global economic governance， and cement popular support for international relations. The Chinese government has paid heed to the C20 meeting， showing its active attitude by inviting suggestions from civil society. This also shows that China is willing to shoulder the responsibility of making its due contribution to eliminating poverty and boosting green development and innovation.

Consensus Building

You Jianhua， secretary-general of the China NGO Network for International Exchanges， said the C20 China 2016 had three characteristics and achieved three consensuses. Firstly， it is a highlevel meeting. Representatives of foreign NGOs said that they were happy to learn through Xi Jinpings message of congratulation that they were welcome to participate in the economic and social activities in China. They added that they felt happy and safe to come to China and invest here， knowing that China will further improve its legislative environment.

Second， the meeting reflects voices of NGOs and people at various levels and in different fields. About 200-odd representatives from G20 member states， seven guest countries， over 10 friendly countries， and an African delegation attended the meeting and made suggestions and contributions.

Third， the meeting is open， transparent， and democratic. The Chinese organizers broke new ground this time by opening registration online and inviting suggestions in advance.

You Jianhua pointed out that the communiqué generated by the C20 highlighted the three consensuses reached at the meeting， namely， eradicating poverty， boosting green development， and innovation， are significant to the G20 Summit； the active role of civil society in promoting the recovery and revival of the global economy； and the development of the Chinese economy as a guide to the recovery and revival of the global economy.