At the 2026 Beijing Forum on Swift Response to Public Complaints, CGTN reporter Li Jingjing spoke with Busani Ngcaweni, director of the Centre for Public Policy and African Studies at the University of Johannesburg, about what other cities can learn from Beijing’s hotline.

Ngcaweni says the 12345 hotline is more than a complaints channel. It gives people a way to ask for help. And it turns what they say into policy change. 

He says cities eveerywhere could learn from it, including in the Global North, where systems can be slow to respond.

Ngcaweni says countries can learn from each other, particularly for the Global South. He pointed to China’s record on infrastructure, public-sector capacity and skills training as areas where that echange matters most.