Reciprocal Reception of Devnet Pavilion of Shanghai World Expo 2010 Key speech of Dr. Daniel Barrios, Director General of Devnet International
Date: 29th September 2009
Venue: Hilton Hotel, Shanghai China

Ladies and Gentlemen,

On behalf of Devnet International and Devnet/China, let me first express our gratitude to you for having accepted our invitation to this meeting. The day after tomorrow China and its people, its central and local governments, as well as the Chinese Communist Party and other parties which participate in the political life of the country, will celebrate a very important anniversary.

It was on 1st October 1949 when Chairman Mao Zedong in Tiananmen, the Gate of Heavenly Peace, officially declared the founding of the People's Republic of China and its People's Government. Throughout the sixty years, since then, China has seen significant changes, recovering the best of its culture and tradition, regaining its territorial unity. China has started a process of recognizing Chinese people's human rights, their right to have work, their right to have access to health and education, their right to equal opportunities and their right to be a part of change which involves hundreds of millions of people.

I started my speech by stressing this historical fact because I believe that nothing of what China is today-and let me add- of what the new global architecture which is undergoing dramatic transformation could have been possible had not the "Long March of the Red Army" led by chairman Mao Zedong and Chou Enlai succeeded.

Mr. Gao Guoqiang, Director General of Devnet China - to whom I wish to express in public all my gratitude for the efforts in making possible Devnet participation in the World Expo - has already explained the progesss as far as Devnet Pavilion is concerned.

On this occasion, I would like to take the opportunity to share with you some key institutional topics in the context of global politics which may help in elucidating the concept and circumstances which led to our participation in the Shanghai World Expo 2010.

In 2006, Devnet International, together with the United Nations and the World Meteorological Organization, sought participation in the Expo and subsequently received confirmation to set up its Pavilion. We chose the conceptual theme of "harmonious life" for our Pavilion to echo and refresh one of the most significant thoughts of Confucius which flourished more than 2,500 years ago: "Harmony is something to be cherished." The choice was made because Devnet - an executing agency of the UNDP and a Non-Governmental Organization with Category 1 Consultative Status granted by the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) - has been doing its best since its inception, a quarter of a century ago, to design and execute programs and projects for the attainment  of an "harmonious world". By  harmonious world, we mean more and better South-South Cooperation, peace, end of poverty and hunger, universal education and health care, equal opportunities and rights between sexes, care for sustainable environment, access to new information and communication technologies of the modern world, effective development assistance and fairer trade. A harmonious life for Devnet is a new human-centered society.

In other words, a harmonious life - and this is a critical concept - will be possible if the so-called United Nations Millennium Development Goals will be achieved.

It is for this reason that all Devnet programs-such as TIPS, WINNER, Alpymes, Al Invest, Asia Invest, Environmental Technological Network, Electronic Business Meeting-are focused on the MDGs and executed under the auspices of the UNDP, the European Union and other international organizations that commit to pursue the MDGs.

The tenth anniversary of the MDGs will take place on 8th September 2010,drawing attention to the day when the UN General Assembly launched the MDGs. In this regard, we are very proud to announce that the Bureau of Coordination of the World Expo will celebrate "Devnet Day" to acknowledge the contribution that our organization has been giving for the achievement of the MDGs.

In the run up to this historic event, we are co-organizing, together with the United Nations South-South Cooperation Unit and relevant Chinese organizations, the “International Millennium Forum “.

High-level delegations and top ranking Chinese and foreign personalities,   scientists, academics, heads of UN agencies (UNDP, UNEP, UNICEF, UNIFEM, UNESCO, UNOPS,ILO, HABITAT,FAO) former  UN Secretary general, Nobel Laureates, etc   will be joining  this international gathering of minds.

One of the main results expected of the above-mentioned forum is the establishment of a Trust Fund to support both the existing programs and the new ones to be co-executed by Devnet and United Nations South-South Cooperation Unit, from 2010 to 2015, for the achievement of MDGs. We have now 214 days to go until the opening ceremony of the Shanghai World Expo 2010, undoubtedly one of the most important events ever organized for Shanghai and China, and let me say, for the entire world.

The Chinese people and the  international community will focus, in the next six months,  their attention on China as they did one year ago when China staged the most illustrious and successful Beijing Olympic Games in history. The World Expo is conceived as an extraordinary opportunity for countries, international, regional and national organizations as well as private and state-owned enterprises to showcase their latest innovations in urban development and to exchange innovative ideas on this subject.

For China, the theme of the World Expo, "Better city, better life", is meaningful because it also represents an extraordinary chance to show what China is doing for building a modern and robust society, creating a new welfare system, and improving standards of living driven by economic growth on the platform of societal balance and harmony. Devnet began its activities in China when the reform process initiated by Den Xiaoping was just starting and such reform process brought prosperity to hundreds of millions of people.

One of the first nine founding countries of TIPS, China is also a charter member of Devnet since December 1985, the year the United Nations Economic and Social Council granted Devnet Consultative Status Category 1. Since then, DEVNET/China has been assisting Chinese local governments and enterprises in drawing foreign investment to China, promoting import and export of technologies and products, and strengthening international exchange and cooperation. Devnet/China has become one of the most developed commercial and investment networks within the country.

China arrives at the World Expo with a sense of momentum, proud of an economy that, more than ever, rides the economic storm of a crippling recession. With most of the world on the verge of financial collapse, China's economy has experienced phenomenal growth - in fact, too big and too healthy, as it is expected to grow by at least 8 percent this year, despite all the odds-which the rest of the world cannot ignore. For China, World Expo means an excellent opportunity to share its experience and to learn as well what the rest of the world is doing to improve the living conditions of their people. More importantly, the World Expo will allow the tens of millions of visitors to understand why China is nowadays taking the centre stage.

Number "9" (pinyin - "jiou") is considered a good number in Chinese culture because it sounds the same as the word "long-lasting" or eternity ("jiou"). Number 9 is strongly associated with the Chinese dragon, a symbol of magic and power.

In the 20th Century, the years ending with number 9 have been crucial and very meaningful to Chinese political, economical and social life. In 1949, the People's Republic of China was founded and, we may say, "Only socialism could save China". In 1979, when Deng Xiaoping's Four Modernizations were in progress, we may say as well that "Only socialism with Chinese characteristics could save China."

In 1989, when the Tiananmen protests and the former Soviet Union was breaking up, we may say as well that only China can save socialism. And today, in 2009, when the global financial crisis brings the worst recession in 70 years, China is evidently becoming the engine of the global economic recovery and, we may say as well that China is carrying the responsibility for overcoming the global recession and supporting the recovery of the world economy.

Thanks you very much for your attention.

Source: DEVNET