What I saw in China

'Hide your strength, bide your time.'

This famous quote of Deng Xiaoping, the architect of modern China, drove Beijing's foreign policy for decades. Deng, whose reforms led to the opening of China's economy in the late 1970s, wanted China to focus on internal development, avoid confrontation with major powers and gradually strengthen itself until it was ready to assert global influence. Successive Chinese leaders followed that piece of advice.

It was because of this reason that when China was undergoing major transformation, the outside world had little or no clue about. China's economy grew by an average 10 per cent annually for three consecutive decades. At the turn of this century, China surpassed all other developed countries and is the world's second largest economy today. As China grew in not just economy but other fields such as technology and military hardware, it is now opening up to the world.

Last week, I travelled to China at the invitation of the International Department of Communist Party of China (IDCPC) for a weeklong visit to attend a ministerial dialogue on cultural exchanges as well as getting a firsthand account of phenomenal transformation. I was part of the 12-country Asia-Africa group and there were dozens of other delegates representing all continents of the world. China no longer hides its capabilities and is ready to showcase to the world its strengths.

This was my third trip to China since 2017. Every time you visit this country, you learn something new. One noticeable change was that many Chinese are now learning English. A few years ago, this was a major barrier. But China has realised that as its global profile increases, it does require its people to communicate in English. Beijing, the Chinese capital, often remained in the spotlight a few years ago because of environmental pollution and poor air quality. Western media outlets often highlighted this fact in their coverage. Today, when you visit Beijing, there is a total transformation. No sign of any smog or fog or any pollution. It is as neat, clean and green. In fact, Beijing in many ways looks more modern than many western cities. China is a huge country.

China's sheer size is mind-boggling. For perspective, Xinjiang province, which borders Pakistan, is almost twice the size of our country. Many outsiders wonder whether China's development is confined to megacities like Beijing and Shanghai. During this trip, I had the opportunity to visit Yan'an and Xi'an in Shaanxi province. Yan'an holds a special place in Chinese history. This mountainous city was Mao Zedong's base for 13 years during the struggle to liberate China.

Just a decade ago, much of Yan'an rural population lived in abject poverty. But what I saw was astonishing progress. We visited a hilltop village that once struggled to make ends meet. The region grows apples, but traditional farming methods meant farmers earned very little. The government facilitated partnerships between villagers and private companies, introducing modern agricultural techniques. Today, 70 per cent of Yan'an population depends on the apple industry and Shaanxi produces one out of every seven apples in the world, with Yan'an having the lion's share.

The change in people's lives is remarkable. Families who, just ten years ago, struggled to feed themselves now own houses and cars. The city boasts theme parks and modern facilities that even some urban centres elsewhere in the world lack. But this was only a glimpse of China's broader transformation. We toured a robotics manufacturing company and visited a high-speed train factory. China already operates bullet trains between Shanghai and Beijing with speeds of 450 km per hour. This month, it unveiled a train capable of 600 km per hour and tests are underway for a train that could travel at 1,000 km per hour.

From what I witnessed, China is no longer quietly building strengths, it is confidently stepping onto the world stage. There is little doubt now that China is on course to becoming the world's next superpower.