CRI听力:China in Need of Talents Suit for Int'l Organizations

Hao Ping, the Vice Minister of Education, is the first Chinese person to chair UNESCO for a two-year mandate.

The Vice Minister says the appointment indicates not only can he be relied upon to fulfill the role, but China can also be trusted.

"Today, I feel that my mission is glorious and my responsibility is huge on this solemn platform. All the representatives of the UNESCO member states have unanimously elected me to the president of the 37th General Conference. This means not only am I trusted, but my nation is trusted."

Hao Ping adds his appointment reflects China's growing influence on the world stage.

"With China's growing national strength and increasing influence on international affairs, many countries have high expectations of China, the world's second-largest economy. They hope China can be trusted with responsibilities in UNESCO and take the role of a responsible country."

Wu Jianmin is China's former ambassador to France, and former chairman of the International Exhibition Bureau.

He says another factor contributing to Hao's appointment is his numerous qualifications.

"China has its own candidate. That's Hao Ping. However, if the candidate was not accepted, the appointment could not be realized."

Besides Hao Ping, a rising number of Chinese have taken key positions in international organizations over past years, such as WHO Director-General Margaret Chan, IMF deputy director Zhu Min, and Li Yong, Director General of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization.

However, according to a new report from the United Nations, compared to other major countries in the world, the proportion of Chinese serving international organizations is relatively low.

As of June, there are only 74 Chinese nationals working in the UN secretariat, excluding translators.

This number is much lower than the UN's estimate which ranges between 116 and 157.

Meanwhile, there are only 11 Chinese nationals serving senior management positions, compared to 48 American, 19 British and 14 Japanese nationals.

Wu Jianmin explains China still lacks personnel to serve key positions at international organizations.

"On one hand, it's a matter of whether or not international organizations need China to send more people to fill in these positions. On the other hand, it depends on whether or not we have qualified candidates. In my experience, people from other countries serving higher positions in international organizations are usually very familiar with how the organizations work. That takes years of working experience in those organizations."

He suggests China should foster more young talents, and dispatch them to work for international organizations as early as possible.

For CRI, I'm Xiezhao.