Yang Weiqun, vice-chairman of China International Development Cooperation Agency, addresses the forum on July 13, 2024 in Beijing. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Young people exert significant influence in promoting global sustainable development by driving digital technology innovation and digital economic development, officials and experts told a forum held in Beijing on Saturday.

"Digital development is the trend of today, and youth are the future of the world. With the current acceleration of the new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation, new technologies and applications such as artificial intelligence, big data and the internet are driving the future and have far-reaching value in the progress of human civilization," Yang Weiqun, vice-chairman of the China International Development Cooperation Agency, stated in an address to the forum, titled Uniting Generations: Shared Global Youth Responsibilities in the Digital Era.

The forum was a parallel event held during the second High-level Conference of the Forum on Global Action for Shared Development, and was organized by the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology(Guangzhou) and the Beijing Youth Entrepreneurs Association, attracting around 250 international participants including officials, experts, scholars and industry pioneers. The event aims to establish a platform for exchanging ideas and sharing experiences, delving into the responsibilities and challenges faced by global youth in the era of digital economy, and collectively seeking effective pathways to promote digital equality and achieve shared development.

"We are in the thick of the digital age. It brings opportunities and challenges that never before existed," said Lionel Ni, president of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology(Guangzhou).

"The technological revolution has changed the way we live, the way we work and the way we communicate. Whether you like it or not, the digital revolution has brought the world closer together. At this technological turning point, we also find ourselves at a crossroads in a world complicated by tensions and conflicts. I believe, as an educator, that freedom comes with responsibilities to be fair, to be truthful, to be inclusive, to be ethical. We can begin again by guiding our young people toward embracing an inclusive world as its future leaders," Ni said.