The Sino-German Center for Sustainable Development

Project description

Title: The Sino-German Center for Sustainable Development
Commissioned by: German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)​​​​​​​
Country: People’s Republic of China​​​​​​​
Lead executing agency: Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China (MofCom)
Overall term: 2017 to 2024

CSD

Context

China and Germany look back on four decades of successful development cooperation. Traditional bilateral development cooperation between the two countries has been phased out in response to China’s rapid development. The BMZ 2030 reform strategy identifies China as a global partner with whom the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) works strategically to tackle the issues defining the common global future and to protect and preserve global public goods.

To identify potential synergies between official development cooperation as delivered by Germany and foreign aid and South-South cooperation as provided by China, BMZ and the Chinese Ministry for Commerce (MofCom) jointly launched the Sino-German Center for Sustainable Development (CSD) in May 2017 with the aim of institutionalising the partnership.

Establishing the CSD opened a new chapter in the development partnership between China and Germany. At the same time, it is a concrete effort to vitalise the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development enshrined in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. As strategic partners, the two countries are combining their international efforts towards building an inclusive, sustainable, and resilient future together with developing countries. Today, both countries jointly foster sustainable development within a global context.

Objective

Sino-German cooperation on global and regional development goals is improving.

Approach

The CSD operates in three pillars to:

  • provide methodological and technical input for the Sino-German dialogue on development cooperation
  • identify, prepare, support, and evaluate regional, global, and triangular cooperation projects between Germany, China, and other countries, particularly in Africa and Asia
  • engage Chinese, German, and European enterprises in the promotion of sustainable development in the Global South

The Trade Development Bureau (TDB) under MofCom and GIZ coordinate the operation of the CSD.

Last update: January 2022

Additional information