It is said that the rise of China is the most important event of our time. The Chinese economy, after more than 30 years of high-speed development, is now widely recognised as a powerhouse for global growth. But China wants to make an even greater contribution to the world.

"The greatest ideal is to create a world truly shared by all," said President Xi Jinping at the UN last September, quoting an ancient Chinese adage. He highlighted the common values of all mankind: peace, development, equity, justice, democracy and freedom. And he explained China's view on the future of the world and mankind, in which international affairs are jointly managed, world order jointly built, and economic growth and social progress shared – a world truly shared by all.

In this world, peace and security is the foundation of all undertakings. Peace, like air and sunshine, is hardly noticed and easily forgotten, but its absence is life-threatening. China constantly advocates peace and harmony, and looks to renew itself through peaceful and cooperative means. Our prescription for avoiding the Thucydides's trap – the likelihood of conflict between a rising power and a currently dominant one – is to build a new type of relationship between major countries. We must treat each other as equals and work together to build a fair and equitable security architecture.

Today, the world faces various challenges, from the refugee crisis in Europe to a string of unconventional security threats. The root cause of all these problems is lack of development: the growing gap between the rich and the poor. To create stability, development must reach every corner of the world, be inclusive and be sustainable. The edifice of global prosperity cannot be built on the shaky foundation of a market without moral constraints; and for it to be sustainable, it must be based on innovation.

Building peace and promoting development in the age of globalisation, when everyone's interests are highly integrated and destinies bound together, requires a massive joint effort. This means, for example, that international governance mechanisms must be improved so as to reflect the will of the majority of countries; international rules must be observed, and international justice must be upheld. All countries have rights and responsibilities, and so should have equal access to rights, opportunities and rules in international economic cooperation.

Believing in a world truly shared by all, China has made serious efforts to fulfil its obligations in this regard: to contribute to world peace and security, to deliver inclusive and sustainable development, and to share its wisdom and strength in addressing global challenges and problems.

In the coming decade, China will establish a 10-year, one-billion-dollar China-UN peace and development fund, join the new UN Peacekeeping Capacity Readiness System and set up a peacekeeping police squad and standby force. In the next five years, in fellow developing countries, China will carry out the "Six 100s" initiative, which will include 100 poverty reduction programmes, 100 agricultural cooperation projects, 100 trade promotion and aid programmes, 100 environmental protection and climate change programmes, 100 hospitals and clinics, and 100 schools and vocational training centres.

China will establish an assistant fund for South-South cooperation, increase investment in the Least Developed Countries, cancel some of the debt of designated nations, and set up an international development knowledge centre. These are our concrete initiatives to boost common development for all.

China is also pushing for a better global governance mechanism. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the New Development Bank BRICS have been established at our initiative. China's currency, the RMB, has been included in the IMF Special Drawing Rights basket. These latest efforts will strengthen the representation and increase the say of the developing world in global finance.

As an example of our commitment to better global governance, consider our contribution to the 2015 Paris Climate Change Conference. China participated in a responsible and constructive manner, and took the initiative fully to incorporate the responses into its overall strategy of economic and social development. Working alongside other parties, we made an important contribution to the comprehensive, balanced and ambitious Paris Agreement.

Consider, too, the China Belt and Road Initiative. With the aim of building a cohesive economic area, China has signed connection and cooperation agreements with more than 20 countries in the region and reached consensus with a dozen others. It is offering a free ride aboard China's development express and a share in our growth opportunities.

Just as President Xi said at the UN General Assembly, "the realisation of the Chinese dream will bring more opportunities to other countries and will contribute to global peace and development". China's development is the world's opportunity, and China will surely make even greater global contribution in the days to come.