People-centred approach hailed in Global South

Across continents and decades - from a primary school yard in Mali to a university classroom in China - Yoro Diallo's life has been guided by one enduring belief: "As long as you understand China, you will love China.

- Zhao Jia and Yang Gao report

For Diallo, that understanding runs deep. It is rooted in childhood memories of China's aid in his hometown in the West African nation, and nurtured through years of working and living in China.

"My father was the principal of a China-built school and taught me Chinese songs when I was little, and my mother used to receive treatment from a Chinese medical team, so China left me with a deep and beautiful impression when I was a kid," he recalled. "And now I am honoured to be able to work in China as an adult."

The 72-year-old arrived in China in 2013 as a diplomat working for the Malian embassy in Beijing. Four years later, he joined Zhejiang Normal University in East China's Zhejiang province.

"What I've learned here is the fighting spirit - working hard to make life better for people and to realise their aspirations," the 2024 Chinese Government Friendship Award recipient said.

He said he believes that the key to understanding this bond lies in leadership. And that is why over the years, he has studied Xi Jinping: The Governance of China - now a five-volume collection - along with numerous speeches by the Chinese leader, which he says offers profound insights into China's approach to development and governance.

Since the publication of the first volume in 2014, Xi Jinping: The Governance of China has grown into five volumes, and has been translated into more than 40 languages and distributed in over 180 countries and regions. The fifth volume was officially released in July in both Chinese and English editions.