The 11th "Love Knows No Borders" International Charity Sale was held in Beijing on Sunday. Money raised at the event themed "Run to a Better Future" will be used for constructing school playgrounds in Malipo County and Jinping County in southwestern China's Yunnan Province.

The event provides a platform for the Chinese people to interact with the world. It is a gathering of all those who have love and kindness to offer.

Diplomats from nearly 90 embassies and representative offices of international organizations attended the opening ceremony of the event, which has been initiated by Qian Wei, wife of Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

"Readiness to give and help those in need is a fine tradition of the Chinese nation. Over the years, to help people living in poor areas, we have donated the revenues of the international charity sales to social welfare and poverty alleviation programs in Yunnan, Gansu, Henan, Guizhou and Guangxi. Through international charity sales, we have passed on the love coming from you from around the world to villagers, the disabled, and the children in the mountainous regions of China," Wei said. 

China is a major developing country with a large population. Eliminating poverty and achieving moderate prosperity has long been an aspiration of the Chinese people and a solemn commitment made by the Chinese government. 

"By 2020, all rural residents living below the current poverty line will be lifted out of poverty," CPC General Secretary Xi Jinping has said.

Over the past 10 years, money raised from the charity sales has been used to fund children's education, support village teachers, treat cataract patients, renovate mountain villages, and construct water cellars and bridges. These measures have helped thousands of vulnerable families.

"The money raised at this year's charity sale will be donated for funding school playgrounds in Malipo County and Jinping County in Yunnan Province. It will greatly help improve the infrastructure, which is important for educational development in poverty-stricken areas," Party Secretary of Malipo County Liu Yang said.

Music, dance, handicraft, fine arts, wines and food from different countries presented a fine example of cultural interaction at the event.

Ambassadors say they support the charity sale as people come together to show their love for those who need it the most. They say the charity sale not only builds a bridge of friendship between China and the international community, but also a bridge of hope, leading people in impoverished areas to a better future.

"It's for charity. Today, the focus is children. The children are the future. You made a very huge change, incredible change during the last 40 years, and the rest of the world admires China for this process," Chile's Ambassador to China Luis Schmidt Montes said.