UN pushes to end poverty among disabled

China's envoy to the United Nations stressed that eradicating poverty among persons with disabilities is essential to achieving the UN's sustainable development goals.

"To live free from poverty is a fundamental right of people pursuing a better life. And to end poverty in all its forms everywhere is the primary goal of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development," said Ma Zhaoxu, China's permanent representative to the UN.

"As equal members of the community of mankind, persons with disabilities face special difficulties in poverty eradication," he said on Tuesday at an event jointly organized by the missions of China, the European Union and UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA).

About 100 people from more than 50 member states, including the United Kingdom, Italy, Greece, Kenya and India, as well as organizations in the field, attended the conference, and discussed challenges and solutions in poverty eradication for persons with disabilities.

Ma said there are 85 million people with disabilities in China, more than any other country in the world, and the Chinese government is committed to supporting them.

"As President Xi Jinping once said, in building a well-off society, we must not leave anyone with disabilities behind," Ma said.

Ma illustrated some highlights of the government's efforts — China has set up a living allowance program for persons with disabilities in financial difficulty and a care allowance program for persons with severe disabilities.

Since 2016, 20 million persons with disabilities have benefited from these programs and seen their lives improved.

Through hard work, the number of poverty-stricken persons with disabilities in China has dropped to 1.7 million by the end of 2018 from nearly 6 million in 2014.

At present, poverty alleviation for persons with disabilities "remains an uphill battle", said Ma.

"There are still many to be helped, and the work is getting even more difficult," Ma said.

"The government will make strenuous efforts to resolve the problems and continue to move forward in poverty eradication," he emphasized.

Ma said poverty eradication for persons with disabilities is at the heart of China's poverty-reduction efforts.

This year marks the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. "Over the past seven decades, China has achieved a lot in poverty reduction," he said.

According to Ma, from 1978 to 2018, the numbers of China's rural poor have been reduced from 770 million to 16.6 million. Based on World Bank estimates, in the past four decades since the launch of reform and opening-up, China contributed more than 40 percent to poverty reduction worldwide.

"When China turns itself into a well-off society next year, all the rural poor under the current standards will be lifted out of poverty. This will be a miracle in the history of poverty reduction," Ma said.

"Poverty is the greatest global challenge," Ma said.

According to the latest UN report, based on current progress, the goals in the area of poverty reduction in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development will not be achieved on schedule.

Ma called for the international community to work together to eradicate poverty and create a better future for all.

As the largest developing country, while battling against poverty of its own, China has been helping other developing countries, especially the least developed countries.

Under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Ma said China is committed to enhancing complementarity of development strategies of relevant countries, to promote connectivity and common development through practical cooperation.

Currently, the BRI has entered a new phase of high-quality development.

"The BRI will make concrete contributions to poverty eradication and attainment of SDGs by the countries involved," Ma said.