G20 should build digital economy friendly to growth, jobs: Xi

Sunday, July 9, 2017

Hamburg - Chinese President Xi Jinping says the Group of 20 (G20) members should build a digital economy that is friendly to growth and employment. 

He made the remarks while attending the two-day G20 summit in the German port city of Hamburg. 

"We should actively adapt ourselves to digital evolution, foster new economic drives, advance structural reforms and promote integrated development of digital and real economy," said President Xi. 

To this end, he proposed to implement the G20 Digital Economy Development and Cooperation Initiative and the New Industrial Revolution Action Plan, both adopted at last year's summit in Hangzhou, China. 

The Chinese leader urged all members to cope with risks and challenges in order to steer the digital economy toward openness and inclusiveness. He said the G20 bloc needs to expand access to the digital economy and reduce the digital divide between the North and the South. 

"We need to pay attention to digitised production and the impact of artificial intelligence on employment in various nations, and to take active employment policies," he said. 

The Chinese President called on all parties to create an international environment favourable to the development of the digital economy, better integrate their respective development strategies and jointly improve the level of digital application. 

"We should push for the construction of a peaceful, secure, open and cooperative cyberspace, and explore ways to build multilateral, transparent and inclusive international trade rules in digital sectors," he said. – Xinhua