At the 13th summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, President Xi Jinping put forward a proposal on boosting cooperation within the bloc. The summit was held on September 13th, 2013, in the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek. It came during President Xi's official state visits to four Central Asian nations. Wang Qiwei gives us an overview of President Xi's proposal and its influence. Bishkek, a caravan stop of the ancient Silk Road. And, as the host of the 13th SCO summit, it has witnessed history. At the summit in 2013, leaders agreed on issues such as regional stability and economic cooperation.

Faced with drug trafficking and other international crimes at the time, Chinese President Xi Jinping stressed the need to fight against the "three evil forces".

In 2013, SCO members were having a hard time recovering from the international financial crisis.

President Xi asked these countries to enhance cooperation in areas including energy, economy, and trade. And to carry forward the spirit of the Silk Road.

And how to achieve that goal? He came up with an idea in the same year. One of that would go on to influence more than 60 percent of the world's population.

XI JINPING CHINESE PRESIDENT "To forge closer economic ties, deepen cooperation and expand development space in the Eurasian region, we should take an innovative approach and jointly build an 'economic belt along the Silk Road'."

The Belt and Road Initiative is creating new overland and maritime corridors, enabling better trade opportunities along the route.

Over the past four years, the mechanism has brought many benefits to SCO member states.

Infrastructure has been improved in the region, with new railways, tunnels and power plants being built.

Last year, trade volume between China and countries along the Belt and Road reached more than a trillion US dollars, an 18 percent year-on-year increase.

The initiative is expected to generate a collective GDP of 2.1 trillion US dollars -- that's equal to almost one-third of the world's economic output.

People say it's "the project of the century". And big changes are happening as the new Silk Road takes shape. WQW, CGTN.