On February 28, an article entitled Building a Road to Prosperity Together: Tangible Examples of China-Dominica Cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative authored by H.E. Chu Maoming, Chinese Ambassador to Dominica, was published in Dominica's mainstream media The Chronicle. Ambassador Chu briefed the Belt and Road Initiative raised by President Xi Jinping and its fruits in Dominica.

Following is the full text of the article：

As the New Year begins, everything feels fresh and renewed. After spending the first Spring Festival on the island, members of the 7th batch of the medical team, who had just arrived in Dominica, wasted no time and jumped straight into their clinical work. A few weeks ago, Dr. Deng Nan, the team leader, successfully conducted a 20-minute surgery for a patient with severe renal hydronephrosis caused by a kidney injury, effectively alleviating the patient’s pain and earning widespread praise. In another case, Dr. Song Li, a young and talented female ophthalmologist, applied her advanced skills and rich experience to perform the eyelid laceration suturing combined with eyelid margin surgery for a severely injured patient in China-Dominica Friendship Hospital. These two cases not only highlight the exceptional medical skills and selfless dedication of the Chinese medical experts but also vividly illustrate the cooperation and shared development between China and Dominica under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

It has been 62 years since China sent the first medical team to foreign countries and 17 years since the first medical team came to Dominica. Over the past 17 years, 40 Chinese medical experts have come to Dominica, offering high-quality medical care, making significant breakthroughs in the medical field, and collaborating closely with local doctors. They have not only saved lives but also contributed to improving Dominica’s health care system through academic lectures and clinical training. The medical teams have always been warmly welcomed by the local people, and their work has been highly praised by local medical professionals. As a Chinese saying goes, the friendship between nations is built on the mutual affection of their people, and that affection comes from mutual understanding. The medical cooperation between China and Dominica has deepened the friendly exchanges and trust between the two countries, laying a solid foundation for the overall development of our bilateral relations.

As a matter of fact, health care collaboration is just a microcosm  of the broader China-Dominica cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative. In 2013, President Xi Jinping put forward the proposal of jointly building the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, which has since then received great global attention. In 2018, China and Dominica signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on BRI cooperation, which accelerated collaboration across various fields and brought real benefits to both peoples. Projects like the international airport and the construction of six post-hurricane schools have progressed steadily. The Chinese medical teams and agricultural experts have worked closely with local communities to improve both health care and agricultural services in Dominica. For years, the Confucius Classroom has helped nurture future China-Dominica friendship ambassadors. Other small but impactful projects, such as the building of playgrounds in various communities and the restoration of the Arawak Theatre, have all enhanced the well-being of local people. Meanwhile, many Dominican students and professionals visited China for study, training, and cultural exchanges. There’s no deny that those fruits of cooperation have contributed significantly to Dominica’s economy and society and the living standards of the local people. On this basis, the two countries signed a cooperation plan in Beijing last March when Honourable Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit paid an official visit to China on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of our diplomatic relations to jointly promote the building of the BRI. By doing so, the two sides agree to further deepen BRI cooperation for the benefits of the two countries and peoples. It can be said that the future of China-Dominica cooperation is promising with unlimited potential.

This year marks the 12th anniversary of the official raising of BRI. Over the past twelve years, more than 150 countries and international organizations have signed cooperation agreements with China. Major infrastructure projects, such as the China-Laos Railway and the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway, have been completed and are now in good operation. Trade between participated countries has increased in both volume and quality. Green development initiatives are progressing steadily, people-to-people exchanges have achieved great success, and cooperation in science and technology continues to grow. All in all, Belt and Road cooperation has progressed from “sketching the outline” to “filling in the details”, and blueprints have been turned into real projects. It has become a widely supported international cooperation platform and made important contributions to building a community with a shared future for mankind. 

However, some Western countries have consistently viewed the BRI through a biased lens, undermining its efforts, accusing China of creating “debt traps,” and alleging that it masks geopolitical ambitions under the guise of “aid.” Others argue that the initiative’s projects lack economic sustainability, damage the environment, and encourage corruption. These claims are nothing more than a distorted misrepresentation of the initiative. In fact, the BRI is founded on the principles of extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits, and it aims to enhance policy, infrastructure, trade, financial and people-to-people connectivity with the goal to ensure participated countries can be self-sustained and create their own engines for economic growth. At the same time, it consistently integrates the principles of green development and actively adheres to the Paris Agreement on climate change. Practice has fully approved that the BRI not only brings infrastructure development, technological advancements, and job opportunities to participated countries, but also build their capacity for self-sustained growth, making a significant contribution to global economic growth and sustainable development. That said, the Belt and Road is a path of cooperation for win-win outcomes and a path of peace and friendship fostering mutual understanding and strengthening all-around exchanges.

We Chinese people believe that even mountains and seas cannot distance people with common aspirations. China and Dominica, though separated by vast oceans, have nurtured ever solid friendship and cooperation for years. Looking ahead, I am confident that, guided by the Belt and Road Initiative, the two countries will continue to follow the principles of extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits, exploring more opportunities for cooperation and bring more tangible benefits to our peoples. I look forward to seeing the tree of China-Dominica friendship thrive in the fertile soil of the Belt and Road, bearing abundant fruit, and contributing even more to building a community with a shared future for mankind.