Green BRI and Climate Prosperity Plans of Global South 

Lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets, President Xi Jinping said while visiting Yucun Village in Zhejiang Province. He presented the theory at a time when China was grappling with environmental problems. Rapid economic growth brought environmental challenges, and China sought solutions and motivation to tackle them without compromising development goals. Against this background, President Xi’s words provided the required motivation and vision and sparked a new era of environmental and climate governance and development: green development. When he assumed leadership of China, he implemented his vision of green development nationally and made it an integral part of his global agenda. 

On the domestic front, since the 18th National People’s Congress, China has upgraded, reformed, and formulated different policies and laws for environmental and climate change governance and management, including the Environmental Protection Law of the People’s Republic of China, the Air Pollution Prevention Action Plan, the Water Pollution Prevention Action Plan, and the Soil Pollution Prevention Action Plan. President Xi is also advancing his vision of green development through initiatives such as the New Philosophy of Development, the Dual Circular Economy, High-Quality Development, and others. 

On the global front, he launched the Belt and Road Initiative, envisioning it as a green initiative in addition to an economic and investment one. Therefore, right after launching the BRI, President Xi deputed the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) to devise a comprehensive policy under the BRI to promote climate-compatible, environmentally friendly, and green development. The NDRC immediately established the Green BRI program and developed a policy to advance green development through the BRI and turn it into a green BRI. 

The Green BRI gained new impetus at the 2nd BRI Forum in 2019, and China launched numerous initiatives, including the Belt and Road Initiative International Green Development Coalition (BRIGC), Silk Road Environment Program, Green Silk Road Envoy Program, Big Data Platform, Belt and Road Environmental Technology Exchange, Transfer Center, Green Lightning, and Green Cooling Initiatives, under the BRI.

However, the BRI International Green Development Coalition (BRIGC) is one of the most important initiatives for realizing the dream of green and environmentally friendly development. It is a joint venture of China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment and over 100 international intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations. The BRIGC was established with three specific objectives: to promote policy dialogue and communication, serve as an environmental knowledge platform, and serve as a technology transfer platform. 

The BRIGC is performing exceptionally well under the able and dynamic leadership of Dr Zhang Jainyu. He is leading with a spirit of comradeship and socialist values. He is transforming it into a platform for dialogue, knowledge sharing, and partnership building to promote the vision of the Green BRI and green development. He is also promoting the socialist vision of environmental management, economic development, and governance. 

It is worth noting that after the 3rd BRI forum, China has added new dimensions and dynamics to the Green BRI agenda. The process began with a high-level special forum on the Green BRI at the 3rd BRI forum, attended by the UN Secretary-General and other dignitaries. Second, China launched the BRI Green and Low-Carbon Expert Network to further enhance coordination with partner countries. Third, President Xi Jinping announced that China will invest in building the capacity of 100,000 personnel from BRI member countries by 2030, equipping them with green development skills. China has already built the capacity of 1500 officials under the Green Silk Road Envoys Program. These are only a few examples; there are many more.

Meanwhile, China is also taking concrete steps to implement the green BRI vision. First, it began diverting investment toward green energy, infrastructure, and industry. For example, in 2025, China invested almost US$21 billion in green energy-related projects. Simultaneously, China is working with 29 BRI countries to build low-carbon demonstration zones and strengthen their capacity to address development and climate change-related challenges. 

Moreover, China is cognizant of the dual challenge- the climate crisis and development needs- of the Global South countries. Therefore, China prioritizes cooperation and investment for the Global South under green BRI. Global South countries also want to benefit and fulfill their dream of sustainable development. Unfortunately, many lack the capacity to formulate green development projects and benefit from Green BRI-related initiatives. 

In this context, the Climate Vulnerability Forum-V20 (CVF-V20), a 74-member intergovernmental organization, can help to bridge this gap and overcome capacity issues for two reasons. First, all CVF-V20 members are BRI members from the Global South. Second, the CVF-V20 has been developing Climate Prosperity Plans (CPPs) with members’ climate vulnerabilities, development crises, and needs in mind. The CVF-V20 develops these plans in collaboration with governments at all levels: federal, provincial, and local, and they are owned by governments. Projects included in CPP are grounded in on-the-ground realities and aligned with national policies.

Let’s look at an example from Pakistan to understand the process and importance.  First, the process of developing the CPP was led by the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Climate Change Ministry and Environmental Coordination, and supported by all relevant governments, federal, provincial, and local. The CVF-V-20 supported and facilitated the process. Second, the projects included in the CPP are grounded in on-the-ground realities and aligned with the Nationally Determined Contribution, the National Adaptation Plan, URAAN 2025, and the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, among other priority policies. The projects span diverse areas and of the listed projects, 34 relate to mitigation, 15 to adaptation, and 20 to resilience. Moreover, the CPP calculated the economic rationale and investment return rate for the selected projects. The selected CPP projects have an average IRA of 31-34%, an EIRR of 22.24%, and a payback period of 4.8-5.2 years.

Third, CVF-V20 is a proponent of Green BRI and works closely with members to raise awareness and encourage them to take advantage of Green BRI opportunities. For example, most recently, CVF-V20 organized a national event in Islamabad to highlight the possible linkages among CPP, Green CPEC, and Green BRI. 

Moreover, CVF is keen to engage and develop sustainable relation with Chinese institutes and companies. To this end, the CCVF-V20 organization attended the China International Fair in Trade in Services (CIFTIS) and organize bilateral meetings with the Ministry of Environment and Ecology, CIDCA, CIKD, and others. It met with BRIGC and tried to find common ground to work together. Notably, Dr. Zhang Jainyu, Executive Director of BRIGC, Ms. Sara Jane Ahmed MD, and the CVF-V20 team, including Mr. Hamza and others, agreed to strengthen relations and work more closely.    

In conclusion, the above discussion shows many similarities/sometimes overlaps between the objectives and practices of Green BRI and CVF-V20. Therefore, it is strongly suggested that Green BRI and CVF-V20 work closely, rather than develop formal linkages and cooperation mechanisms. It will be a win-win proposition. It will help CVF-V20 to tap investment from China for its members from the Global South. Second, it will help China fast-track implementation of Green BRI-related interventions by selecting projects directly from CPPs, without wasting time devising projects. Third, it will help the Global South benefit from Green BRI opportunities, which is also a major goal of Green BRI. Fourth, it will further strengthen China’s image among Global South countries as a true friend and a country that stands by its statements. It will also strengthen buy-in for its international relations policy, shared prosperity philosophy, and modernization drive.

It is good to note that China and Chinese institutions, which is apparent from the meetings between Chinese institutions and team of the CVF-V20,