Poverty fight sets example for other nations

As Uzbekistan increasingly looks eastward for development solutions, especially for poverty alleviation, linguist Dilsora Mirzaakhmedova is trying to introduce China's development philosophy to the Central Asian country while building bridges for cross-cultural communication.

Invited by the Chinese embassy in Uzbekistan, Mirzaakhmedova, an associate professor at Minzu University of China's School of Foreign Studies, spent nearly a year from 2021 to 2022 translating the book Up and Out of Poverty into Uzbek.

The book is a compilation of President Xi Jinping's speeches and articles from 1988 to 1990 when he was secretary of the Communist Party of China Ningde Prefectural Committee in Fujian province. Ningde, once among the most impoverished regions in Fujian, declared itself poverty free in 2018.

It outlines Xi's perspectives on various topics including economic development, Party building, cultural advancement and talent cultivation.

Although Mirzaakhmedova has rich experience in translating Chinese books into Uzbek — she began studying Chinese in 2005, finished her master's degree and then obtained a PhD in the language — she was hesitant to take up this task at first.

"Translating political books is particularly challenging," Mirzaakhmedova recalled. "However, after reading it, I was captivated by its clear and accessible language as well as the profound ideas it presents. That's when I decided to take up the task."

"It is a book that talks about China's politics, society and history," she said, adding that the chapters discussing how to improve education impressed her the most as she believes that education plays a crucial role in poverty alleviation.

"President Xi prioritizes education, and in Uzbekistan, our president shares a similar vision. The phrase that 'it takes a decade to grow a tree but a century to nurture a person' resonates deeply with our own educational policies."

"Even with the best economic policies, if education lags behind, poverty alleviation will not be sustainable," she said. Mirzaakhmedova is also impressed by the approach China took in its poverty alleviation efforts.

Instead of immediately implementing an untested method at a national level, China first conducted experiments in specific regions, and only after these methods proved successful in those areas were they expanded to the entire country, she noted.

"I find this approach very wise and practical," she said, adding that the step-by-step method is one of the key reasons behind the effectiveness of China's poverty alleviation efforts.

Poverty alleviation has garnered widespread attention in Uzbekistan. When the book was released in the country in 2023, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev wrote the foreword.

"The book traces the arduous road of poverty alleviation that China has gone through with vivid examples, profoundly summarizes China's practical experience in poverty alleviation, and highlights the hardworking qualities of the Chinese people."

The book was first published in 1992, and has continued to hold significant value for national social governance for more than 30 years, the Uzbek president wrote, adding that the rich connotation and spiritual value continue to be widely studied by economists, political scientists and a broad range of readers.

Calling China's success in poverty alleviation a "miracle", Mirziyoyev wrote that he is pleased to see that Uzbekistan and China are helping each other and moving forward hand in hand in the process of solving similar or identical development issues.

Mirzaakhmedova said many people in the Central Asian country have already read the book, not only government officials but also ordinary people who are interested in China.

"When I returned to Uzbekistan and expressed my desire to buy 10 copies of the book, I was told that they were sold out."

Mirzaakhmedova said that she believes that different readers look at the book from different perspectives — some from a political angle while others focus on the economy, but all stand to learn from China's experiences.

Active bilateral cooperation to reduce poverty is deemed by the Chinese Foreign Ministry as a highlight of the comprehensive cooperation between the two countries.

The Central Asian nation has been piloting and promoting China's poverty reduction experience across its regions. It has sent multiple delegations to China in order to gain firsthand understanding of local experiences in areas such as agricultural development and rural vitalization.

Su Chang, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' Institute of Russian, Eastern European and Central Asian Studies, said that Uzbekistan's enthusiasm for learning from China's poverty reduction strategies reflects both a pressing domestic need and strong recognition of China's development model.

Uzbekistan acknowledges China's success in economic development and social governance, seeing China's poverty reduction model as both practical and adaptable, Su said.

"Uzbekistan has already seen notable progress in poverty reduction, and China's experience has played an important role in that progress," she said.

Ravshan Nazarov, a senior researcher at the Institute of State and Law of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Uzbekistan, said that China's successful approach to combating poverty provides substantial support in implementing the United Nations' 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and showcases a diverse and systematic model of poverty reduction that can serve as a practical example for other countries.

"China's successes in poverty alleviation are based on the harmony between economic development and social protection. It has not only developed infrastructure, but also created long-term opportunities for self-improvement for the underprivileged through the advancement of education, healthcare and vocational training," he said.

In addition to the Uzbek edition, the book Up and Out of Poverty was translated into English and French in 2017, and then published in Spanish, Cyrillic Mongolian, Hausa, Swahili and Lao in the following years.

In November last year, the Portuguese version of the book was launched. With its unique antipoverty theory with Chinese characteristics that can be drawn upon, the book has become essential reading material for many international leaders, especially for those from the Global South.

Osmar Junior, executive secretary of Brazil's Ministry of Development and Social Assistance, Family and Fight against Hunger, said that the book holds even greater significance in a world of turbulence and transformation.

He said the book shares profound insights into national governance and social development, offering valuable lessons on poverty alleviation and sustainable development.