Published on: 2026-05-17
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Baku, May 17 /Xin Hua/ — China is one of the largest practical laboratories of modern urbanization, its experience in the field of sustainable city development is of great interest for developing countries, including Azerbaijan. This was stated in an exclusive interview with Xin Hua by Emin Gasimov, director of the Azerbaijani Center for the Study of Global Initiatives, Development and Culture of China.
The 13th session of the World Urban Forum /WUF13/ on the topic “Housing for All: Safe and Sustainable Cities and Communities” will be held in Baku from May 17 to 22 of the current year. The event was jointly organized by the UN Human Settlements Programme /UN-Habitat/ and the government of Azerbaijan.
E. Gasimov has visited China multiple times from 2014 to 2025. He assesses the experience of China in the housing sector as one of the most large-scale examples of practical urban policy. According to him, China is moving from traditional housing policy to a policy of creating a full-fledged urban environment through the development of affordable housing, large-scale reconstruction of old urban neighborhoods, and renewal of urban infrastructure.
“I personally have seen how the urban environment is changing: transport is becoming more convenient, public spaces are better organized, the quality of everyday services is improving. China demonstrates that affordable housing should be linked with the reconstruction of neighborhoods, the development of communities, transport, ecology, and concern for people,” he said.
In Shanghai, the indicator for fifteen-minute accessibility of basic services, where next to a person’s residence there should be basic social, domestic, cultural, and transport opportunities, was highlighted by an expert. And in the new Xiongan district of Hebei province, he sees a model of a new generation city, where housing is pre-connected with public services, ecology, transport, and modern management.
“For developing countries, including Azerbaijan, the most useful thing is not some separate Chinese project, but the very logic of the Chinese approach: urban infrastructure should work as a unified system and serve the main goal — the convenience of everyday human life. This is precisely where the practical value of the Chinese model for cities that want to develop quickly, sustainably, and modernly lies,” said the interviewee from Xinhua.
Azerbaijan intends to use WUF13 as an incentive for the long-term renewal of the urban environment, and for Baku the Chinese experience related to practical city management is useful, stated E. Gasimov. He noted that Shanghai is important as a model of a highly organized megapolis, where economic power is combined with transport connectivity, digital management, and improvement of urban environment quality.
In the expert’s opinion, the example of Shanghai shows that sustainable development of a large city requires not only the construction of new districts, but also constant renewal of management: coordination of transport, utilities, public safety, environmental control, and urban services.
“The main lesson of China for the world is that a sustainable city is not a city that is simply built quickly. It is a city that is capable of combining economic growth, ecology, technology, public services and human dignity,” emphasized E. Gasimov.
Please note; this information is raw content, obtained directly from the source of the information. It represents an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.