China is changing from a recipient nation to a donor nation in international aid. It is expected to play a bigger role in international poverty alleviation.

The British government's international aid agency, the Department for International Development, hopes China will shoulder more responsibility in alleviating poverty globally, particularly in Africa.

"The speed and scale of its (China's) growth is helping to reduce poverty in other developing countries, particularly in Africa," remarked Mr. David Adrian, head of DFID China, in his speech at the conference celebrating the achievements of the private sector development program, a seven-year DFID project in China.

Last week in Beijing, Yao Shenhong, deputy director-general of the International Cooperation Department under the Ministry of Commerce, said that China is willing to share its experiences in poverty alleviation with other developing nations. He said that China began to offer help to other nations years ago and would make further contributions "in its own way".

Mr. Adrian believes that there are two things that other developing nations can learn from China in terms of reducing poverty. Firstly, China has demonstrated that "if you have commitment and confidence and you own your own plans for polices to reduce poverty and you implement them well, then you will succeed." Secondly, where a practice has been proven beneficial, China is quick to roll it out across the country.

Mr. Adrian believes that China "is already taking a great role by virtue of its trade and investment" in Africa, because that involvement has an impact on poverty reduction. He hopes that the UK, which is very active in Africa �C it will allocate 1.25 billion pounds in direct aid grants to the continent next year �C will share experiences and work with China and African countries to "help promote African development".

Developing a Global Partnership for Development is one of the eight Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) defined by the United Nations. The International Poverty Reduction Center in China was established in 2005 as the result of China-UNDP cooperation. Zhang Lei, head of the center, said its task is to help developing nations reduce poverty. The center plans to sponsor a training program specifically tailored to policy makers from Africa. They are also working with DFID on research comparing Chinese and African poverty reduction models.

Mr. Adrian confirmed that DFID's future cooperation with the International Poverty Reduction Center in China would make bilateral assistance a "global lesson in sharing."

There is some suggestion that learning should be two way. Christonph Weinmann, an official from the International Labor Organization and Chief Technical Adviser on one of the projects of the private sector development program, stressed that China can also learn from African countries which completed the transition to a market economy years ago.

Pang Xiaopeng, an associate professor at Renmin University, said that China should learn from other countries about giving support to small businesses �C those with no more than 5 million yuan in assets �C and treating all enterprises equally, regardless of ownership or size.

DFID will close a 32-million-pound program in China this year which reduces poverty through developing the private sector. The shift in DFID's priorities and the closure of the program came as China had reached its goal of lifting half of its poor people out of poverty. Another reason for the closure of the program is that it addresses poverty in urban areas in a country where the poorest group is in rural areas.

Mr. Adrian has been to Gansu, Sichuan, Xinjiang and Tibet, all in China's west. He said he always tells visitors from UK to go to the west "to see the contrast" between big cities like Beijing and Shanghai.

DFID again made clear its commitment to China in 2005-2011, and will concentrate more on basic education, HIV/AIDS, water supply and sanitation, and international development issues.

By People's Daily Online