Address by H.E．Jia Qinglin
Chairman of the NationaI Committee of
The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference of
The People's Republic of China
At the China-Netherlands Business Luncheon
The Hague,28 October 2011

Minister Knapen,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear Friends,

I'm delighted to come to the picturesque city of The Hague and meet you,friends from the Chinese and Dutch economic and business communities．Over the years,all of you present have done a lot of effective and fruitful work to promote the business cooperation between our countries and deepen the friendship between our peoples．I wish to take this opportunity to express sincere thanks and best wishes to all of you.

The Netherlands is reputed for being the "Garden of Europe" and the "Land of Windmills"．You are also known in the world for the magnificent Afsluitdijk．But much more than that,you have been for ten years in a row,the second largest exporter of agricultural products in the world after the United States．With only 0.14 hectares of arable land per person,your agricultural exports account for 9％of the world's total．You are a proud provider of dairy products and the biggest flora exporter in the world．Modern agriculture and animal husbandry in the Netherlands lead the world in technology,facilities,education and professionalism．Despite the size of its population,the Netherlands ranks the 16th in economic aggregate in the world．In addition to these admirable accomplishments,the Netherlands has emerged in relatively good shape from the international financial crisis that broke out in 2008, and its sovereign debt is at a normal and safe level. As a friend of the Dutch people, we feel truly happy for you and admire your achievements.

Although our two countries are far apart geographically, friendship has taken deep roots in the heart of our peoples．For the 39 years since the establishment of formal diplomatic relations,the governments and people of China and the Netherlands have made joint efforts,maintained sound political relations and carried out fruitful cooperation in areas ranging from economy and trade to science and technology,and from culture to people-to-people exchanges．The Netherlands has been China's second biggest trading partner in the European Union for eight consecutive years．In 2010,our trade reached a record high of 56.2 billion US dollars. Investment from the Netherlands in China amounted to 12 billion US dollars,including over 60 projects that involve US$100 million or more．Such investment features high quality and big volume for individual projects. Chinese companies' investment in the Netherlands reached 1.2 billion euros in accumulative terms,involving nearly 300 companies in trade,transportation,finance,manufacturing, energy and other businesses．Mutual investment between our two countries demonstrates a sound momentum of growth. The four training centers of animal husbandry, horticulture,diary industry and agriculture that the two countries jointly set up in China have facilitated our agricultural exchanges and cooperation．

Ladies and Gentlemen,

There is a great deal of interest the world over in China's economic development and its prospects. So let me give you a brief update. In recent years, China effectively tackled the huge impact of the international financial crisis, maintained steady and fast economic growth, and contributed our bit to the recovery of the world economy. Last year, China became the second largest economy in the world and contributed over 30% to world economic growth．Our GDP grew by 10.4% and reached 4,400 US dollars in per capita terms,and our foreign trade increased by 34.7%．This year, thanks to continued proactive fiscal policy and prudent monetary policy as well as enhanced macro economic control, the economy has maintained steady and fast growth．In the first six months,GDP grew by 9.6% and price hikes were brought under control；domestic demand provided a stronger push for growth; and trade surplus dropped by 17.6% year on year,leading to a greater balance between import and export．

Early this year, China formulated the outline of the 12th Five-Year Plan for Economic and Social Development. According to the Plan,China will focus on scientific development and accelerate the shifting of the growth model. China will deepen reform and opening-up, ensure and improve livelihood, and promote sustained, steady and fast economic growth and social harmony and stability with a view to securing the foundation for a society of all-round, higher-level initial prosperity that benefits the over one billion Chinese people. The Plan underscores sustainable development. Sustainable development is necessitated by the survival and development of the Chinese nation, and achieving sustainable development in China will contribute enormously to the world civilization. China's modernization cannot copy the old model of excessive resource consumption and high environmental costs．Instead,we must blaze a path leading to a balance between our economic and social development and between our population,resources and the environment,a development path that features harmony between man and nature. In the next five years, we will accelerate our efforts to put in place an industrial mix and production and consumption models that are resource-conserving and environment-friendly,and take concrete measures to reduce energy intensity and emissions．We will step up exchanges and cooperation with other nations on climate change so as to build our counter climate change ability more effectively．We will reinforce innovation in science and technology and accelerate the development of circular economy. We want an economic growth driven more by innovation．We will unswervingly implement the basic state policy of opening-up and pursue a win-win strategy of opening-up,expand import,put more emphasis on bringing in advanced technologies,talented people and intellectual resources,and do a better job in protecting intellectual property rights．We sincerely welcome enterprises from the Netherlands and all other countries to actively engage in China's quest for sustainable development and share the opportunities and fruits brought about by this endeavor．

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The world economy is slowly recovering,but it is a fragile and imbalanced process．Growth has slowed down in both developed and emerging economies. Unemployment is running high in major developed economies and inflationary pressure is building up in emerging economies．The United States narrowly averted a fiscal crisis. Some EU members are facing mounting sovereign debt risks. Against such a backdrop,stronger economic and trade ties between China and the Netherlands not only benefit development of our two countries,but also allow us to work hand in hand for a steady recovery of the world economy. At the same time,the fact that our countries are at different stages of development give us strong economic complementarity. Therefore,we are in a great position to deepen our economic and trade cooperation to serve the common interests of our people. To this end,I wish to make the following proposals．

First,deepen cooperation in modern agriculture and raise the level of our cooperation. The Netherlands is strong in agriculture,while China,a major agricultural country of 1.3 billion people,is vigorously seeking balanced urban and rural development and accelerating the pace of agricultural modernization. There is a solid foundation and a broad prospect for agricultural cooperation between China and the Netherlands．We should continue to strengthen cooperation in greenhouse technologies,vegetable and flower cultivation,food processing,dairy industry,animal husbandry,veterinary and other fields. We should encourage universities and research institutes to engage in joint research and exchange students and visiting scholars programs. We should give full play to the exemplary role of the Sino-Dutch Agricultural Innovation and Promotion Center and lift the modernization level of our agriculture together．

Second,promote trade facilitation and expand bilateral trade volume. As two big trading nations,China and the Netherlands are each other's important trading partners. While upholding free trade and keeping our markets open,we should take active measures,not least give full play to the role of such mechanisms as the Joint Economic Committee,to create a favorable environment for our bilateral trade. Our customs and quality inspection agencies may deepen their cooperation in customs facilitation,electronic information transmission,inspection and quarantine with a view to providing quality customs clearance services．We should also expand trade in high-tech products and services,including tourism,transportation,culture,traditional Chinese medicine,finance and insurance,to keep elevating the level and increasing the scale of our bilateral trade．

Third,improve investment environment and encourage two-way investments．China welcomes more Dutch companies to China to make investments,start businesses or set up R＆D centers and regional headquarters. We also encourage well-established Chinese enterprises to invest in the Netherlands. Companies from both countries may actively explore cooperation in high and new technologies,advanced manufacturing and modern services sector in the forms of green field investment,equity participation or M＆A．We will continue to provide quality service to and create a good investment environment for companies of various kinds．On the other hand,we hope the Netherlands will further relax restrictions on market access and take concrete steps to address the issues concerning work permit and work visa in order to facilitate Chinese companies in doing business in your country．Chambers of commerce,trade associations and investment promotion organizations of both sides should actively engage in cooperation, improve their services and provide better platforms for companies of both countries to deepen mutual understanding and explore business opportunities．

Fourth,expand cooperation on energy conservation and environmental protection and work together to tackle climate change．China is pursuing green and low-carbon growth．We are working actively to build a resource-conserving and environment-friendly society．The Netherlands boasts advanced technologies and sophisticated managerial expertise in energy development, energy efficient buildings and recycling of resources．The governments and companies from both sides should enhance exchanges and cooperation in these areas,and make a real effort to apply the good practices identified in our demonstration projects of environmental infrastructure,urban planning and old town preservation,energy efficiency and heat supply of buildings,and sewage and waste treatment．We should engage in mutually beneficial cooperation in the field of energy conservation and environmental protection through mutual investment,technology transfer and ecological demonstration zone,and jointly respond to challenges posed by climate change and resource constraints．

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Next year marks the 40th anniversary of our formal diplomatic relations．Confucius,an ancient philosopher and educator of China,once said,"At the age of 40,one has no doubts about the world．" That is how I feel about China-Netherlands relations. These relations have matured. I am confident that as long as our governments and business sectors hold steadfast to our beliefs,seize the opportunities,join hands and press ahead,the economic and trade cooperation between China and the Netherlands will bear more fruits and bring more benefits to our countries and people．

Thank you．