Editor's note: Zhao Yuezhi is a humanities chair professor and director of the Research and Teaching Practice Base for Global South Communication at the School of Journalism and Communication of Tsinghua University. The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

As the first rays of 2026 illuminate the horizon, President Xi Jinping's 2026 New Year message offers more than just a seasonal greeting; it provides a strategic vision for a nation transiting from the successful conclusion of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) to the ambitious dawn of the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030). 

With China's GDP reaching a milestone 140 trillion yuan (about $20 trillion), its epoch-defining journey toward modernization has reached a pivotal juncture – one that demonstrates how a nation can simultaneously elevate its own people while providing a stabilizing force for a turbulent world and contributing Chinese solutions and wisdom for engendering peace and prosperity for humanity.

China's self-development a global opportunity

The logic of developing oneself while benefiting the world begins with domestic stability and a people-centric developmental paradigm to "care for every leaf and tend every branch in the garden of people's well-being." As President Xi noted, China has been on a remarkable journey over the past five years, characterized by achieving significant achievements through overcoming "many difficulties and challenges." In a global landscape marred by economic volatility, China's ability to provide for its 1.4 billion people with "a growing sense of gain, happiness and security" – is, in itself, a monumental contribution to humanity.

By achieving its own development, China serves as an anchor of certainty and an engine for global growth. The 2026 message highlighted tangible improvements in people's livelihoods: from better protection for the rights and interests of the workforce in new forms of employment to the 300-yuan monthly subsidy for each family with childcare needs and the large-scale adaptation of facilities for the elderly. This focus on common prosperity is not merely a domestic social policy; it also creates a massive, resilient consumer market. When "every family" in China thrives, the "big family" of the Chinese nation becomes the primary engine for global trade and demand.

Innovation as key for breaking 'zero-sum' trap

A recurring theme in Xi's message was the transition toward "new quality productive forces." This is one of the new development pillars of the 15th Five-Year Plan, a blueprint that aims at not only optimizing China's domestic economic structure and promoting self-reliance and strength in science and technology, but also creating new growth drivers for the entire global economy, particularly providing new developmental opportunities for the Global South.

As China is leveraging innovation to upgrade and redefine its industrial capacity, it brings down the cost of high-tech goods – from renewable energy infrastructure to AI-driven agricultural tools – making them accessible to the Global South. By refusing the path of de-coupling and advocating for the deep integration of technology and industry, China is helping developing economies bypass the traditional, high-pollution stages of industrialization. This is the essence of China's new development philosophy in action: creating a tide that lifts all boats.

Chinese wisdom for the Global South

Perhaps one of the most profound pieces of Chinese wisdom lies in a developmental approach that strives for human-nature co-existence and rural-urban coordination. Having studied the "Zhejiang Experience" extensively and shared it widely with foreign observers, I see the "Thousand Villages Project" and the "Green is Gold" praxis, for example, as highly relevant for the Global South.

The Western narrative often suggests that China's development solutions are "unrepeatable" due to the country's unique conditions. However, the success of local industrialization in Zhejiang and elsewhere – where small towns transform local specialties like buttons, socks and snacks into thriving industries – proves otherwise. The core lesson is suitability.

Whether it is a Zimbabwean student studying the branding of a local snack or a Chilean student marveling at Zhejiang's leveling of the urban-rural developmental gap, the message is clear: modernization does not require the sacrifice of the countryside or the environment. By proving that ecological protection and economic growth can be two sides of the same coin, China offers an invaluable reference point for nations struggling with what can seem to be a binary choice between poverty and pollution.

A shared future in an uncertain world

Xi's message underscored his "Global Governance Initiative," a 2025 addition to a series of Chinese developmental, security and civilizational initiatives, and a timely response to an era of intertwined changes and chaos. 

The full launch of the Hainan Free Trade Port and the hosting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit in 2025 are symbols of China's determination to continue "opening up across the board," in stark contrast to protectionist "small yards and high fences." Similarly, China's commitment to new Nationally Determined Contributions for climate change reflects a core philosophy: China's interests are inseparable from the world's, and China's future is bound with the world's.

A new beginning on a proven path

As 2026 starts and as China looks toward the 15th Five-Year Plan, the goal is not hegemony, but high-quality development that invites the world to join hands to build a community with a shared future for humanity. Chinese modernization has definitively moved beyond the experimental phase into a mature, inclusive and self-confident paradigm. 

By focusing on people's well-being while contributing Chinese wisdom to global challenges, the nation is proving that a prosperous China is the best guarantee for a stable global village, and China's success is the world's opportunity.