BY DASTAN AMANGELDIEV
Correspondent of Today.kg, Kyrgyzstan
For Kyrgyzstan, China is not a distant global power, but a neighbouring country with a major influence on our trade, transport links and emerging economic opportunities. My first visit to China, including participation in a programme at Nanjing University, will give me an opportunity to observe these processes on the ground rather than through reports. When people in Kyrgyzstan discuss China, the conversation quickly moves from geopolitics to practical questions: How long will a shipment remain at the border?
How much will delivery cost? Will a new transport route become available? Can a local company gain access to a larger market? For a landlocked country, geography is not merely a backdrop; it is a fundamental economic factor.
The Kyrgyz Republic, better known as Kyrgyzstan, is one of the five countries of Central Asia and has been an independent state since 1991. It shares borders with Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and China. Much of our territory is covered by the Tian Shan Mountain range, while the capital, Bishkek, lies in the north of the country. The main road crossings on the Kyrgyz-Chinese border are Torugart and Irkeshtam, both located in high-altitude areas.
To readers elsewhere in the world, Kyrgyzstan may appear to be a small dot at the heart of Eurasia. For us, however, our position between major markets shapes the conditions under which the country develops. Kyrgyzstan’s economy depends on foreign trade, transport connectivity and constructive relations with its neighbours. Chinese- made goods have long been a fixture in Kyrgyz markets, local companies use Chinese equipment, and the efficiency of border operations directly affects small and medium- sized businesses.
For Kyrgyzstan, therefore, China is not an abstract player in global politics. It is our immediate neighbour and an important economic partner.
Looking Beyond the Statistics
I mainly report on economic affairs. My upcoming trip will be my first visit to China. Until now, I have come to know the country through books, statistics, analytical reports and news coverage. I now want to compare those accumulated impressions with what I observe in person.
I am particularly interested in how long‑term decisions are implemented on the ground. How does a national strategy translate into action in cities, universities and businesses? How does infrastructure affect the day ‑to ‑day operations of ordinary companies? Which digital services genuinely save people time, and which remain little more than showcases of technological capability?
Several years of hands‑on business experience taught me to assess an economy in terms of time, costs, regulations and access to markets. My engineering background also leads me to judge digitalisation not by impressive presentations, but by how convenient, reliable and useful a particular system is in practice. These are professional lenses through which I approach the subject, rather than the main focus of the trip.
For Kyrgyzstan, solutions in digital customs administration, logistics, public services and e-commerce are especially relevant. In a mountainous country with remote communities, digital tools can partly offset distance and gaps in physical infrastructure. Technology, however, has value only when it is accessible to people and solves a specific problem.
China’s experience cannot be copied wholesale . The differences in scale, institutions and economic structure are too great. It should instead be studied as a body of governance practice: how long-term goals are defined, how skilled professionals are trained, how manufacturing is supported and how technology is introduced. For Kyrgyzstan, the key question is what can be sensibly adapted to our own circumstances.
Global Governance from the Perspective of a Landlocked Country
For a small country, global governance is not measured by the number of international declarations. It is felt in trade rules, access to transport corridors, financing conditions and the ability to participate in decision-making.
When a new road shortens delivery times, businesses and consumers benefit. When border digitalisation reduces paperwork and makes procedures more transparent, costs fall. But when an infrastructure project merely channels goods across Kyrgyzstan without creating local jobs, skills or productive capacity, its impact remains limited.
These are the criteria by which the Belt and Road Initiative should be assessed. Kyrgyzstan should not simply become a transit route between major markets. New connections should support the development of logistics, processing industries, exports, vocational education and the participation of local companies in regional and international supply chains.
The quality of cooperation also depends on project transparency, economic viability, environmental responsibility and long‑term implications that are clearly understood by the public. Trust develops when a partnership produces measurable benefits for both sides.
Kyrgyzstan has an interest in an international system in which smaller states are not forced to choose a single partner. We are developing relations with China, our Central Asian neighbours, longstanding partners, European countries and other regions. This is not indecision. It is the natural strategy of a small, open economy that needs diversified markets, technologies and transport routes.
The countries of the Global South do not constitute a single political bloc either. They have different interests, systems of government and levels of development. Yet many face a common problem: the international narrative about them is often shaped without their full participation. Central Asia is frequently explained to foreign audiences through the perspectives of major international media centres, while local journalists are treated as secondary sources.
A fairer system of global governance is impossible unless countries are able to tell their own stories about their interests, challenges and achievements.
Nanjing: Professional Development and Direct Exchange
From 18 to 20 October, I will take part in the Professional Development Programme for Journalists from the Global South. The programme is being organised for the first time by the Secretariat of the Platform for Cooperation among Journalistic Organisations under the Belt and Road Initiative and will be hosted by the School of Journalism and Communication at Nanjing University.
I expect the programme to deliver concrete professional value . Working with distinguished journalists, professors and colleagues from different countries should help me strengthen my methods of information verification, data analysis and reporting on international economic projects.
An economic journalist must be able to examine more than a press release. The figures, the terms of agreements, implementation schedules and a project’s actual impact on people all matter. International initiatives cannot be covered solely in the language of official statements. Journalists need to explain who is financing a project, what problem it is intended to solve, what risks it carries and what the host country ultimately gains.
Another area of particular interest is the use of artificial intelligence and digital tools in newsroom work. These technologies can accelerate research and information processing, but they also raise the standard required for verification. Technology can assist a journalist, but it cannot replace professional judgement, contextual knowledge or accountability to the audience.
Direct exchange among journalists from the Global South is equally important. It allows us to obtain information without unnecessary intermediaries, verify facts more quickly and better understand national contexts. The aim is not to create a single “correct” interpretation of events, but to build a professional network in which newsrooms can turn to one another as reliable primary sources.
I intend to use my time in Nanjing for both observation and reporting. I am interested in urban transport, digital services, the university environment, small businesses, culture and the everyday lives of residents. Lectures provide a conceptual framework, but it is the city itself that shows how decisions work in practice.
What I Hope to Take Away from My First Visit
One trip will not be enough to understand China fully. It should, however, allow me to replace some second-hand impressions with first-hand observation.
I want to return to Kyrgyzstan not with a collection of generic compliments or prepackaged criticism, but with verified facts, new sources and a more precise understanding of the country. The main questions are already clear: How can China’s experience inform a small, mountainous economy? How can infrastructure cooperation create value within Kyrgyzstan? How are digital solutions changing public administration and the business environment? And how can journalists in our countries report on one another professionally and without stereotypes?
For Kyrgyzstan, China is not somewhere far away “in the East. ” It is next door, across a shared border. Understanding it therefore requires direct engagement. That is what I see as the central purpose of my first visit, my participation in the Nanjing University programme and my future reporting.
Global governance begins in international institutions, but it becomes real at the border, in a contract, in a newsroom and in the life of an individual. A journalist’s task is to show that connection clearly and accurately.
*The views and opinions expressed in the articles are solely those of the individual authors and do not reflect the position of the Secretariat of the Belt and Road Journalist Network.